Richmond's Barkin: Moderate Range Of Inflation Could Be 1-3%

Richmond Fed Pres. Tom Barkin on Bloomberg TV - reminder, he will be a 2021 FOMC voter.

• On the inflation outlook and the Fed's forward guidance, he says there may well be some inflation particularly in the near-term if demand comes back as supply-side remains stretched. But guidance is much more about where we're headed in the long term - "I hope inflation expectations creep up".
• Re the Fed's new guidance - says he has long supported getting inflation in a moderate range around the 2% target, "whether that be 1.5-2.5%, or 1-3%"; is "not focused on the difference between them".
• Barkin says he's not sure about the premise that there is a disconnect between the Fed and Wall Street about how powerful the Fed's new guidance is. Says if we do in the end see overshoots of inflation, "we are going to have a different conversation". The Fed's guidance will be more powerful as the economy recovers. But, he says, 'lower for longer' doesn't mean 'zero forever'.