Inflation message from Richmond Fed President Barkin

Richmond Federal Reserve President Thomas Barkin said he was comfortable with further increases if inflation doesn’t slow. Richmond Federal Reserve President Thomas Barkin said Friday that he would have no problem raising interest rates if inflation doesn’t continue to fall. “I want to reiterate that 2% inflation is our goal and I still want to be convinced by the plausible story that slowing demand is getting inflation back to that goal relatively quickly,” Barkin said in remarks prepared for a speech in Maryland. “I realize that this creates the risk of a more significant slowdown, but the experience of the ’70s teaches a clear lesson: If you give up on inflation too soon, inflation comes back stronger and requires the Fed to do even more with even more damage. That’s not a risk I want to take,” he added. Barkin is a nonvoting member of the Federal Open Market Committee, which sets rates this year.