Comments from Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart:
- Expects Fed to begin raising rates this year
- US wage growth well below pre-recession rates
- Fed policy normalization to 'proceed gradually'
- Expects moderate growth, rising inflation
He laid off the hawkish rhetoric and cracked open the door to backing down from his near-promise to vote for a rate hike in September.
Lockhart spoke in Berkeley, California and the topic of his speech was public pension funding reform. He is expected to have a Q&A later.
For the rest of the Fed calendar this week, there is Dudley on Wednesday and the Vice Chair Stanley Fischer on Friday at Jackson Hole.