James Bullard, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, told Reuters Thursday that a rate increase in December is now the "base case" for the U.S. Federal Reserve but a move beyond that would likely be at an "imperceptible" pace, According to forecasts released last week after the Fed's policy meeting, Bullard was among 14 of 17 Fed policymakers expecting a rate increase before year's end, the news agency reports.