IMF's Gopinath says would be concerned on inflation if expectations become unanchored

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - International Monetary Fund chief economist Gita Gopinath said on Tuesday that high inflation readings are mostly a U.S. phenomenon and are expected decline next year, adding that she would be concerned if medium-term inflation expectations rise.

"Next year, in terms of what would be concerning, it would be if we saw medium-term inflation expectations, de-anchoring," Gopinath told a news conference on the IMF's economic outlook.

"So if they were moving kind of durably away from the Fed's 2% target and moving away in a way that we haven't seen before, then that would absolutely give, you know, cause for concern," she said.

(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Dan Grebler)