Richmond Federal Reserve President Tom Barkin said Monday that current high inflation might qualify as having fulfilled one of the Fed's requirements for raising interest rates, an inflation rate of 2% or somewhat higher.
"Under the Fed's current policy guidance, rates will rise 'when inflation hits 2%,' which I think you can argue it already has, and it looks like it is going to sustain there," Barkin noted in a speech at the Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce in Virginia. Furthermore, he observed that demand has not yet been impacted by the rapidly spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus.
However, Barkin highlighted that "there is still room to run in the labor market." Barkin is a voting member on the Federal Open Market Committee this year.
