Powell says the Fed would have cut rates this year if it weren’t for Trump

The Federal Reserve would likely have lowered interest rates this year if it weren’t for President Donald Trump’s significant policy changes, Chair Jerome Powell said Tuesday.

The Federal Reserve would likely have lowered interest rates this year if it weren’t for President Donald Trump’s significant policy changes, Chair Jerome Powell said Tuesday. “I do think that’s right,” he said at a central banking forum in Sintra, Portugal, when asked if the Fed would have cut rates by now. The Fed hasn’t lowered interest rates at all this year: Central bankers broadly expect Trump’s tariffs to have some effect on the US economy and they’ve said that they want to see how the dust settles first before resuming rate cuts. But the Fed’s wait-and-see approach hasn’t sat well with Trump, who has repeatedly lashed out against Powell for not yet lowering rates, describing him as a “numbskull” and a “moron.” On Monday, Trump posted on his social media platform a note in his handwriting slamming Powell for keeping interest rates higher than dozens of other nations, writing that he “cost the USA a fortune” and that he continues “to do so.” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the note was delivered to the Fed that same day. European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde — who has backed Powell’s apolitical, data-driven approach to policymaking — praised the Fed leader on Monday, noting that he “epitomizes the standard of a courageous central banker.” She was on the panel with Powell Tuesday.