Trump attacks Federal Reserve Chair after rate cut was less generous than he expected
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President Donald Trump blasted the Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell as a “terrible communicator,” after the U.S. central bank’s rate cut was less generous than what Trump wanted.
The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point on Wednesday, its second move since late July, as it tries to insulate the United States economy against rising political risks and fallout from a global slowdown.
A growing number of Fed officials expect one more cut this year, based on economic projections released following the meeting, in line with investor and economist expectations.
But the Fed’s announcement on Wednesday did little to appease President Trump, who has been pushing the central bank to cut interest rates to zero — or even into negative territory. The Fed’s policy interest rate is now set in a range of 1.75 to 2 percent, and not a single official sees it falling lower than 1.5 to 1.75 percent through the end of 2022.
“Jay Powell and the Federal Reserve Fail Again,” the president tweeted after the Fed reduced its federal funds rate by 0.25 points. “No ‘guts,’ no sense, no vision!”
The president has wanted the federal funds rate to be near-zero, rather than the range of 1.75% to 2% set by the Fed.
The President remarked that other countries such as Germany have an advantage because their interest rates are negative, even though negative rates are a sign that those economies are in a recession and may struggle to grow in the longer term.
