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Empresas y finanzas

U.S. economic strength may not be clear for months: Lockhart


    DUBAI (Reuters) - The U.S. economy will probably start picking up in the second quarter towards around an annual rate of 3 percent, but it may not be clear for some time if it is on a sustained path, a top official at the Federal Reserve said on Sunday.

    "It may not be clear for several months, or even quarters, whether the U.S. economy is undeniably on a stronger and sustained growth path around a run rate of 3 percent," Dennis Lockhart, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, told a business gathering in Dubai in a prepared speech.

    Lockhart, who said he was speaking in his personal capacity, does not have a vote this year on the Fed's policy-setting board but he participates in its discussions.

    He is considered to be near the centre of the central bank's policy spectrum and his comments often reflect the views of the core decision-makers.

    (Reporting by Martin Dokoupil and David French; Editing by Nick Macfie)