US President Donald Trump renewed his call on the US Federal Reserve today, Friday, to cut interest rates, following the release of the non-farm payroll report for April, which came in better than expected.
Trump wrote in an enthusiastic post on his platform "Truth Social" just minutes after the report was released: "As I said exactly, we are still in the transition phase, we are still at the beginning!!!"
He added: "Consumers have been waiting for years for prices to fall. There is no inflation, the Federal Reserve should cut rates!!!"
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday morning that the number of non-farm jobs rose by 177,000 after seasonal adjustment in April, exceeding "Dow Jones" estimates that predicted 133,000 jobs. However, the figure came in lower than the downwardly revised number of jobs for March, which stood at 185,000.
This post reflects Trump's ongoing attempts to influence the decision-making process within the central bank, thus challenging a longstanding tradition of Federal Reserve independence from the executive branch.
The post also shows that Trump is softening his tone towards Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, who was previously a target of harsh criticism from the president and described as a threat.
Trump has long criticized Powell, repeatedly pushing for interest rate cuts to boost economic growth. Last month, economic advisor Kevin Hassett stated that the White House was studying rules that would allow the president to fire Powell.
However, Powell confirmed that Trump does not have the legal authority to fire him before the end of his term as governor in May 2026. Nevertheless, fears that Trump may seek to replace him with someone more responsive to political pressure regarding interest rates have raised concerns among markets and investors worldwide.
On April 21, these concerns led to a wave of selling in the markets, during which the major indices and the US dollar fell on the same day.
Since then, Trump has announced that he "does not intend" to fire Powell and has begun to soften his criticisms of him.
Trump said at an election rally in Michigan on Tuesday: "I have someone at the Federal Reserve who is really not doing a good job," without naming Powell.
He added: "I want to be nice and respectful to the Federal Reserve. You’re not supposed to criticize the bank, but let it do its job, but I know much more about interest rates than he does, believe me."