Bullard Speaks with CNBC about Inflation, the Labor Market and GDP Growth

May 11, 2021

St. Louis Fed President James Bullard discussed his expectations for inflation, the most recent jobs data and his assessment of GDP growth during an appearance on CNBC’s “Closing Bell.”

Bullard said that he expects inflation to be around 2.5% to 3% this year and around 2.5% in 2022. He noted that some of the inflation will be transitory but not all of it, in part because of the Fed’s strategy of being less preemptive than in the past since it is trying to make up for past misses of inflation to the low side of the 2% inflation target.

On the labor market, he said that it is a bit early to expect big jobs growth since the pandemic is not quite over yet. But he noted that the U.S. economy is growing very rapidly and that he expects to see continued above-trend GDP growth into 2022.

Bullard also discussed U.S. monetary policy and said that it is too early to begin talking about tapering the Fed’s bond buying program.

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