The U.S. economy is growing again but recovery will be moderated by a weak labor market and troubles in commercial real estate, Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Dennis Lockhart said.

  Speaking to the Rotary Club of Atlanta, Lockhart said inflation was not an immediate source of concern amid an expansion that would probably remain sluggish.

 "I expect inflation pressures to be restrained as a slow recovery proceeds," Lockhart said in prepared remarks. "A bit like Goldilocks' porridge, the exit or unwinding process needs to be, in my view, not too fast, not too slow, but just right."

 U.S. gross domestic product grew 2.2 percent in the third quarter of last year following the worst recession since the 1930s. The unemployment rate remains at 10 percent, near highs not seen since the early 1980s. Lockhart said growth would not come quickly enough to make significant strides against joblessness.

 In an effort to stem the blow from last year's financial crisis, the Fed has slashed interest rates close to zero and undertook a host of unorthodox measures to lift the economy out of its slump.

 These policies, along with massive stimulus efforts from the federal government, have helped return the country to growth, but also sparked concerns about the dollar and the prospect of future inflation among some economists.

 Fed officials argue that they have the tools necessary to withdraw support to the financial system in time.

 But that process, argued Lockhart, will depend on the U.S. central bank's ongoing independence, which he said is threatened by a bill in Congress that would give legislators the power to audit monetary policy.

 "I am concerned that certain legislative proposals could compromise the independence that enables staying on course," Lockhart said. "I am also concerned about ideas that have been floated that could have the effect—if taken too far—of politicizing the input of regional Federal Reserve Banks in policy deliberations."

Source: cnbc.com