VENTURE CAPITAL POST

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday offered a strong signal that it was on track to raise interest rates sometime next year, altering a pledge to keep rates near zero for a "considerable time" in a show of confidence in the U.S. economy.

Asian share markets rallied on Thursday after U.S. stocks enjoyed their strongest session this year when the Federal Reserve sounded upbeat on the economy and promised to be patient in removing policy stimulus.

The S&P 500 scored its best day since October 2013 on Wednesday as the Federal Reserve gave an upbeat assessment of the economy and said it would take a patient approach toward lifting interest rates.

Federal Reserve officials will decide this week whether to make a critical change to their policy statement that would widen the door for interest rate hikes next year and effectively bet the United States will continue to shine in a gloomy global economy.

U.S. employers added the largest number of workers in nearly three years in November and wage gains picked up, a sign of economic strength that could draw the Federal Reserve closer to raising interest rates.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen has said the tenor of economic data will decide when the U.S. central bank raises interest rates. Surprisingly, a data analysis based on Yellen's own priorities points to a rate increase by the end of this year.

U.S. employers likely hired new workers at a fairly brisk clip last month, underscoring the economy's resilience in the face of slowing global demand.

The top 113 earners among staff at the Federal Reserve's Washington headquarters make an average of $246,506 per year, excluding bonuses and other benefits - more than Fed Chair Janet Yellen and nearly double the normal top government rate.

Federal Reserve officials nudged their expected path of interest rate increases higher on Wednesday, but did little to change the outlook for a long slow climb back up to normal monetary policy.

The euro zone's struggle to avoid another recession will take center stage in the coming week in the absence of major U.S. data, as investors mull whether the ECB's new asset-buying plan is a prelude to even more radical steps.

Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Plosser, the loan dissenter at the Fed's July policy meeting, on Saturday continued his push for the U.S. central bank to change its language on monetary policy to reflect an improving economy and pave the way for a sooner-than-expected interest rate hike.

A majority of Wall Street's top bond firms see the Federal Reserve starting to raise interest rates by the second quarter of next year, showing slightly more aggressive expectations compared with a month ago, a Reuters survey showed on Friday.

U.S. job growth slowed down sharply in August and more Americans gave up the hunt for work, giving a cautious Federal Reserve more reasons to wait a bit longer before raising interest rates.

In her testimony before the Senate Banking Committee, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said that the Fed does not possess any authority to supervise the Bitcoin, The Wall Street Journal blog MoneyBeat reported.

According to economists, the poor jobs report will most likely not prevent the Federal Reserve from proceeding with the trimming of its monthly bond purchases, Bloomberg reported.