Growth last year was driven up by a surge in consumer spending and an increase in private investment.

The selling accelerated Wednesday as the central bank’s chairman, Jerome Powell, acknowledged that the high inflation slamming the economy isn’t getting better.

With the Federal Reserve signaling that it will begin raising its benchmark interest rate as soon as March, consumers and businesses will eventually feel it.

The central bank’s actions are sure to make a wide range of borrowing – from mortgages and credit cards to auto loans and corporate credit – costlier over time.