Fed's Lockhart: Recent inflation spike won't last (by Greg Robb)

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The recent spurt of higher prices will not last, said Dennis Lockhart, the president of the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank on Friday. "While short-term measures of inflation have moved up rather strongly in the last few months, I hold to the view that this trajectory will not persist," Lockhart said in a speech in Ft. Myers, Florida. Lockhart defended the Fed from charges it was oblivious to the recent gains in food and gasoline prices because it sometimes focuses on "core" measures that strip away these costs. "Contrary to popular opinion, Federal Reserve officials do actually eat and fill up their gas tanks," he said. Lockhart says he believes the Fed should focus on headline inflation that includes food and energy prices. He said the Fed can only control inflation over the course of time and not day-to-day, month-to-month, or even quarter-to-quarter.