Richmond Federal Reserve President Thomas Barkin on Wednesday expressed confidence that the economy is on its way to a soft landing, but obstacles remain that will require caution from him and his fellow policymakers. While noting progress made on inflation as economic growth has stayed afloat, the central bank official said interest rate hikes remain “on the table” even though Fed officials at their most recent meeting in December indicated that this round of policy tightening is probably over. “We’re making real progress,” Barkin, a voting member this year on the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee, said in ... (full story)