U.S. Fed rates steady despite Trump blitz

The US central bank is expected to keep interest rates unchanged for a fourth straight policy meeting this week, despite President Donald Trump’s push for rate cuts, as officials contend with uncertainty sparked by the Republican’s tariffs.

While the independent Federal Reserve has started lowering rates from recent highs, officials have held the level steady this year as Trump’s tariffs began rippling through the world’s biggest economy.

The Fed has kept interest rates between 4.25 percent and 4.50 percent since December, while it monitors the health of the jobs market and inflation.

The Fed faces growing pressure from Trump — citing benign inflation data — to lower rates more quickly, a move the president argues will help the country “pay much less interest on debt coming due.”

‘Numbskull’ at Fed

On Wednesday, Trump urged Fed chairperson Jerome Powell to slash interest rates by a full percentage point, and on Thursday, he called Powell a “numbskull” for not doing so.

He said Powell could raise rates again if inflation picked up then.

But Powell has defended US central bank independence over interest rates when engaging with Trump.

For their part, Fed policymakers have signaled “little urgency” to adjust rates, said EY chief economist Gregory Daco.