Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin said the U.S. central bank is facing pressure on both sides of its mandate, with inflation still above target and job growth clearly slowing. However, he noted that the picture is not one-directional, as consumers are increasingly resisting price increases while a contraction in labor supply has kept the unemployment rate stable.
Barkin described the Fed’s current environment as akin to “docking a boat at night without a lighthouse,” highlighting the difficulty of judging policy in the absence of timely government data during the shutdown. The upcoming release of delayed reports, he said, will offer much-needed clarity on both inflation and labor market dynamics.
“I think we have a lot to learn between now and then,” Barkin added, suggesting that the December decision remains highly data-dependent as policymakers wait for the first full set of figures since the government reopened.
