Economics

Fed’s Barkin Sees ‘Long Way to Go’ in U.S. Labor-Market Progress

  • Richmond Fed leader sees job gains in August, September
  • Minneapolis’s Kashkari expects labor-market recovery in fall

Job seekers attend a career fair in Louisville, Kentucky.

Photographer: Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg
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Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Thomas Barkin said the U.S. labor market isn’t close to its pre-pandemic levels and he wants to see much more progress before slowing central bank asset purchases.

“I still think we’ve got a long way to go on the job front,” Barkin said Tuesday in a broadcast interview with MNI Market News, pointing out that employment was 7.6 million below the pre-Covid-19 level.