Trump Pushes Fed Reserve Chief to Slash Interest Rates

President Donald Trump has once again pushed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to slash interest rates by a full percentage point, despite reports showing a better-than-expected economic performance. Knewz.com can report that the last time the United States Central Bank made a single rate cut of a full percentage point was in March 2020 in response to the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.

President Trump is known to relentlessly request the U.S. Central Bank for interest rate cuts and even heavily criticize the Federal Reserve Chair Powell for not doing so. However, market projections show that there is no chance of a rate cut, much less by one full percentage point, after the Federal Open Market Committee’s next meeting. According to reports, President Trump believes that higher rates are holding back the American economy and that lower interest rates are crucial in offsetting potential economic fallout from his sweeping tariff proposals. Although Trump had himself appointed Powell as the Federal Reserve Chair in 2017, he has since spent years criticizing the Fed over interest rates and what he believes to be Powell’s “political bias.”

On the other hand, Trump has himself maintained that the U.S. economy is “doing great.” He wrote in a Truth Social post, “‘Too Late’ [Trump’s moniker for Powell] at the Fed is a disaster! Europe has had 10 rate cuts, we have had none. Despite him, our Country is doing great. Go for a full point, Rocket Fuel!” He added in a subsequent post, “If “Too Late” at the Fed would CUT, we would greatly reduce interest rates, long and short, on debt that is coming due. Biden went mostly short term. There is virtually no inflation (anymore), but if it should come back, RAISE ‘RATE’ TO COUNTER. Very Simple!!! He is costing our Country a fortune. Borrowing costs should be MUCH LOWER!!!”

Despite the pressure from President Trump, Powell has maintained the central bank’s benchmark interest rate at 4.25% to 4.5% for three consecutive policy meetings. The Fed’s decision not to budge is largely due to concerns about the looming impact of tariffs on inflation and growth, and the economic uncertainty amid ongoing trade conflicts between the U.S. and its partners, including China. Powell has responded to Trump’s statements, saying, “The economy has been resilient and part of that is our stance. … That is what matters to us, pretty much that’s all that matters to us.”

It is worth noting in this regard that analysts were bracing for a weaker jobs report in June reflecting the impact of President Trump’s aggressive tariff policies. However, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that U.S. hiring in May rose more than predicted. Nonfarm payrolls rose 139,000 for the month, exceeding Dow Jones estimates for 125,000, according to reports.

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