Washington (AFP) – The US Federal Reserve announced the most aggressive interest rate increase in nearly 30 years on Wednesday, and said it is prepared to do so again next month in an all-out battle to drive down surging inflation. The super-sized 0.75-percentage-point hike came with the Fed under intense pressure to curb soaring gas and food prices that have left millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet and sent President Joe Biden’s approval ratings plunging. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said it was “essential” to lower inflation, and policymakers “have both the tools we need and the re…