Fed’s Barkin says he supports ‘normalizing’ monetary policy

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Federal Reserve officials need to be prepared to adapt monetary policy to respond to changes in the economy, including inflation rising faster than anticipated because of factors including the virus, fiscal support and supply chain challenges, Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin said on Thursday.

An important part of the U.S. central bank’s price stability mandate is to anchor inflation expectations near its 2% target, something that can be hard to do when inflation is rising, Barkin said during a virtual event organized by the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

“I do take seriously actual inflation and its impact, and that’s why I’m supportive of normalizing policy as we’re doing,” he said.

(Reporting by Jonnelle Marte; Editing by Paul Simao)