Trump Says Federal Reserve 'Doesn't Know What It Is Doing'
24 June 2019 - 3:34PM
Dow Jones News
By Rebecca Ballhaus
WASHINGTON -- President Trump said the Federal Reserve "doesn't
know what it is doing" and compared the U.S. central bank to a
"stubborn child" in a pair of tweets on Monday, after the bank
opted not to cut interest rates during its two-day meeting last
week.
"Think of what it could have been if the Fed had gotten it
right," Mr. Trump wrote. "Now they stick, like a stubborn child,
when we need rates cuts, & easing, to make up for what
countries are doing against us. Blew it!"
Mr. Trump told reporters on Thursday of the Fed's decision not
to cut rates last week: "They should have done it sooner, but what
are you going to do?" But he added that he was encouraged the
central bankers seemed ready to deliver rate reductions at coming
meetings, referring to projections from Fed officials and
statements from Chairman Jerome Powell suggesting that they were
leaning toward rate cuts as soon as July.
A Fed spokesman declined to comment on Monday.
Fed officials last week said they believed the economy was
strong enough to handle the current setting of short-term interest
rates but that they were ready to cut rates if the economic outlook
didn't soon improve. Mr. Powell cited uncertainty over the prospect
of new tariffs as a chief threat to the growth picture.
"It's really trade developments and concerns about global growth
that are on our minds," he said at a press conference
Wednesday.
The Fed operates independently of the White House, and until
last year, presidents over the previous 25 years refrained from
commenting on rate decisions.
Mr. Trump, in contrast, has repeatedly called for the Fed to cut
its benchmark rate, currently in a range between 2.25% and 2.5%, by
1 percentage point.
Mr. Powell, whom Mr. Trump appointed, said Wednesday he didn't
believe the law gave Mr. Trump the authority to remove him.
"I have a four-year term, and I fully intend to serve it," he
said.
Write to Rebecca Ballhaus at Rebecca.Ballhaus@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 24, 2019 10:19 ET (14:19 GMT)
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