Poised to raise interest rates Wednesday for a 10th time, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and officials are facing two competing economic trends that could make their future rate decisions more difficult and treacherous.

The wide range of potential outcomes could provoke divisions among Fed officials, even as they’re expected on Wednesday to raise their benchmark rate to 5.1%, the highest level in 16 years. The big question is whether the Fed will also signal Wednesday that it’s now inclined to pause its rate increases — barring any re-acceleration of inflation — and keep its key rate unchanged for the rest of 2023 as it assesses its progress in cooling inflation.

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