©Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Thomas Barkin poses during a break at a Dallas Fed technology conference in Dallas, Texas, U.S. May 23, 2019. REUTERS/Ann Saphir
(Reuters) – A key U.S. government report showing consumer prices accelerating in January but annual increases continued to moderate was in line with Federal Reserve expectations, Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin said on Tuesday.
“It’s about as expected. Inflation is normalizing, but it is slowly declining. I just think there’s going to be a lot more inertia, a lot more inflation persistence, than we might all want,” Barkin said in an interview with Bloomberg TV following the report’s release.
The US Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates at least twice more, to the 5% to 5.25% range, with financial markets about evenly matched for another quarter-point hike in the summer. The Fed’s key interest rate is currently in a range of 4.50% to 4.75%.
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