US President Donald Trump said that the US Federal Reserve should cut interest rates, splitting with the central bank as officials weigh the economic cost of his tariffs.
“The Fed would be MUCH better off CUTTING RATES as US Tariffs start to transition (ease!) their way into the economy,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “Do the right thing. April 2nd is Liberation Day in America!!!”
Trump’s post on Wednesday evening came as his administration prepared to unveil a fresh wave of tariffs, which Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled was hanging over forecasts.
Photo: AFP
Fed officials on Wednesday held their benchmark interest rate steady for a second straight meeting, in a target range of 4.25 to 4.5 percent, and said the central bank would further slow the pace at which it is reducing its balance sheet.
New rate projections showed Fed officials penciled in a 0.5 percentage points of rate cuts this year, according to the median estimate. That implies two 0.25 percent rate reductions, the same number as officials estimated when they last issued projections in December last year.
In their fresh economic forecasts, officials raised the median estimate for core inflation, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, at the end of this year to 2.8 percent from 2.5 percent. Their outlook for this year’s economic growth cooled to 1.7 percent from 2.1 percent.
They raised their estimate for unemployment to 4.4 percent by the end of this year, from the 4.3 percent they forecast in December last year.
“Uncertainty around the economic outlook has increased,” the committee said in a statement.
Officials also removed prior language stating that risks to achieving their employment and inflation goals were roughly in balance.
Speaking to reporters following the two-day meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, Powell downplayed simmering concerns about a slowdown, but acknowledged tariff uncertainty was a factor and already contributing to goods inflation, but could prove transitory.
“As I’ve mentioned, it can be the case that it’s appropriate sometimes to look through inflation if it’s going to go away quickly without action by us, if it’s transitory,” Powell said.
He called that scenario the “base case,” but then hedged, saying officials “really can’t know” if the effect would be temporary.
Trump’s administration is preparing to announce a fresh wave of tariffs on April 2, although the exact scope is not clear. Trump has promised so-called “reciprocal” tariffs on at least some nations, although his administration has not specified which ones or at what rate, and his key economic advisers have competing views on the best way to approach tariffs.
Separately, the Swiss National Bank yesterday cut its interest rate to the lowest since September 2022, at 0.25 percent, acting to stoke inflation by deterring investors from pushing money into the Swiss franc.
“Uncertainty about global economic and inflation developments has increased significantly,” Swiss National Bank President Martin Schlegel said in Zurich. “As a result, the outlook for inflation in Switzerland, too, is currently very uncertain. At present, the risks are predominantly to the downside.”
It was late morning and steam was rising from water tanks atop the colorful, but opaque-windowed, “soapland” sex parlors in a historic Tokyo red-light district. Walking through the narrow streets, camera in hand, was Beniko — a former sex worker who is trying to capture the spirit of the area once known as Yoshiwara through photography. “People often talk about this neighborhood having a ‘bad history,’” said Beniko, who goes by her nickname. “But the truth is that through the years people have lived here, made a life here, sometimes struggled to survive. I want to share that reality.” In its mid-17th to
‘MAKE OR BREAK’: Nvidia shares remain down more than 9 percent, but investors are hoping CEO Jensen Huang’s speech can stave off fears that the sales boom is peaking Shares in Nvidia Corp’s Taiwanese suppliers mostly closed higher yesterday on hopes that the US artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer would showcase next-generation technologies at its annual AI conference slated to open later in the day. The GPU Technology Conference (GTC) in California is to feature developers, engineers, researchers, inventors and information technology professionals, and would focus on AI, computer graphics, data science, machine learning and autonomous machines. The event comes at a make-or-break moment for the firm, as it heads into the next few quarters, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s (黃仁勳) keynote speech today seen as having the ability to
NEXT GENERATION: The company also showcased automated machines, including a nursing robot called Nurabot, which is to enter service at a Taichung hospital this year Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) expects server revenue to exceed its iPhone revenue within two years, with the possibility of achieving this goal as early as this year, chairman Young Liu (劉揚偉) said on Tuesday at Nvidia Corp’s annual technology conference in San Jose, California. AI would be the primary focus this year for the company, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), as rapidly advancing AI applications are driving up demand for AI servers, Liu said. The production and shipment of Nvidia’s GB200 chips and the anticipated launch of GB300 chips in the second half of the year would propel
The battle for artificial intelligence supremacy hinges on microchips, but the semiconductor sector that produces them has a dirty secret: It is a major source of chemicals linked to cancer and other health problems. Global chip sales surged more than 19 percent to about US$628 billion last year, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association, which forecasts double-digit growth again this year. That is adding urgency to reducing the effects of “forever chemicals” — which are also used to make firefighting foam, nonstick pans, raincoats and other everyday items — as are regulators in the US and Europe who are beginning to
RSS