Fed official says taper would be ‘first step’

Fed official says taper would be ‘first step’ 

Dennis Lockhart, the president of the Atlanta Fed, said that the “uneven performance” of the economy has not permitted the Fed to provide certainty to the markets, and the central bank most likely won’t have enough data to do so at its next meeting in September.

Lockhart said he expects the economy to improve over the balance of the year with a further acceleration in 2014. But clarity about the near-term direction of the economy will be lacking for some time, he said.

“I don’t expect to have enough data to be sure of my outlook” in September, Lockhart said.

“For this reason, I don’t think a decision that commits the Fed to a full phase-out of asset purchases and lays out a precise, beginning-to-end path for doing so would be advisable” in September, he said.