Steve Matthews writes:  Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Dennis Lockhart said the central bank’s commitment to a “gradual” tightening suggests interest rates could be raised at every other meeting of the policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee, though the actual pace will depend on incoming economic data.

The Fed said it expected the pace of future tightening to be gradual. Lockhart voted in favor of the statement that announced the quarter percentage point increase in the target range for its benchmark federal funds rate to 0.25 percent to 0.5 percent.

The ”important point” is the pace will depend on “how the economy performs,” Lockhart said. “It will be gradually, but data dependent.”

‘Solid’ Economy

The rate hike reflects a ”solid” outlook for the economy, with inflation likely to move toward the Fed’s 2 percent goal after the temporary drags from lower oil prices and a stronger dollar end, Lockhart said.

Last week’s move ended a seven-year era of ultra-easy Fed monetary policy after officials reduced rates to nearly zero in December 2008 to help the economy recover from the worst recession since the Great Depression.