Trump renews call for the Fed to cut rates after strong jobs report
US President Donald Trump renewed his call on Friday for the US Federal Reserve 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, and we are still in a transitional phase, we are still at the beginning!!!"
He added: "Consumers have been waiting for years for a drop in prices. There is no inflation; the Federal Reserve should cut rates!!!"
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday morning that non-farm payrolls increased by 177,000 jobs after seasonal adjustment in April, surpassing Dow Jones estimates which predicted 133,000 jobs. However, the figure was 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, 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 has previously been the target of sharp criticism from the president, and whose position has been described as threatened.
Trump has long criticized Powell and has repeatedly pushed for interest rate cuts to boost economic growth. Last month, economic advisor Kevin Hassett stated that the White House was considering rules that would allow the president to fire Powell.
However, Powell confirmed that Trump does not have the legal authority to remove him before his term as governor ends in May 2026. Nevertheless, concerns that Trump might seek to replace him with someone more responsive to political pressures regarding interest rates have raised worries among markets and investors worldwide.
On April 21, these concerns led to a wave of selling in the markets, during which 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 a campaign rally in Michigan on Tuesday: "I have someone at the Federal Reserve who is not really doing a good job," without naming Powell.
He added: "I want to be nice and respectful to the Federal Reserve. It's not supposed to criticize the bank, but to let it do its job, but I know much more about interest rates than he does, believe me.