Fed's Barkin: Could take a few more months to hit taper benchmark

In an interview with Reuters, Richmond Federal Reserve Bank President Thomas Barkin noted that it could a few more months to hit the Federal Reserve's taper benchmark.

Additional takeaways

"Not focused on the calendar in taper discussion but on more improvement in job market and particularly further increase in employment to population ratio."

"Inflation may have crested but not dismissing risks that supply shocks, other dynamics may keep it higher for longer than expected."

"Fall will be a key test if workers do not return in significant numbers could challenge assumptions about maximum employment."

"Remains an open question how delta variant will impact economy though so far is not turning up in data."

"When taper does begin, would prefer something simple and easy to explain to markets."

Market reaction

The US Dollar Index, which came under modest bearish pressure following the July inflation report, was last seen losing 0.1% on the day at 92.97.