President Trump is pressing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell for a full-point cut in interest rates, even as he insists the economy is “booming” because of his agenda.
Mr. Trump said Mr. Powell is often “too late” with rate moves and a cut would be “rocket fuel” for U.S. growth.
He pressed the Fed chief for changes despite a Labor Department report Friday that said the U.S. added a stronger-than-expected 139,000 jobs in May.
“’Too Late’ at the Fed is a disaster! Europe has had 10 rate cuts, we have had none,” Mr. Trump wrote Friday on Truth Social. “Despite him, our Country is doing great. Go for a full point, Rocket Fuel!”
The central bank is unlikely to accept the president’s advice, with most forecasters predicting the Fed will sit tight on rates this month because tariffs might lead to inflation.
The Fed’s wariness around tariffs is angering Mr. Trump, who believes borrowing costs should be lower for Americans and that his levies on imports are bringing in much-needed revenue for the U.S. Treasury.
“GREAT JOB NUMBERS, STOCK MARKET UP BIG! AT THE SAME TIME, BILLIONS POURING IN FROM TARIFFS!!!” he wrote on his social media page.
The U.S. trade deficit saw a dramatic decrease in April as companies adjusted to Mr. Trump’s tariff policy, according to a Commerce Department report released Friday.
The trade deficit was $61.6 billion in April, meaning it dropped $76.7 billion from $138.3 billion in March.
The department said it was the sharpest monthly decrease on record.
Wall Street had forecasted a deficit closer to $66 billion for April.
The dramatic change reflects a U-turn in imports as Mr. Trump tweaks his trade strategy.
Importers rushed to bring in products in the early months of the year as Mr. Trump considered heavy levies on other nations.
But by April, the Commerce Department said Americans brought in fewer finished metals, cellphones, pharmaceuticals and other products from abroad.
Mr. Trump’s tariffs sparked concerns of an economic slowdown due to higher costs in the supply chain. Yet the trade policies are in flux, and doomsday predictions haven’t come true.
The May jobs report showed a slowdown from the prior month but stronger growth than expected.
The increase came in lower than the 177,000 jobs added in April. Yet it beat forecasts of about 125,000, and the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.2%.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics said sectors such as health care and leisure and hospitality added jobs, while the federal government “continued to lose jobs” as Mr. Trump and his team slash the government workforce.
Stock jumped because the jobs report was more robust than anticipated. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 443 points, or 1%.
But Sen. Ron Wyden, Oregon Democrat, said the slowdown in the jobs report was a worrying sign. He attributed it to Trump administration policies and said the GOP’s proposed legislation to cut taxes and domestic spending would make it worse.
“It’s clear the job market is slowing amid all the economic chaos Trump is creating, and the worst thing he and Republicans could do right now is shred the safety net and spook markets further by adding trillions to the national debt,” said Mr. Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee. “Trump was handed the strongest economy in the world, and without anybody around him who can control his worst impulses, he’s tearing it down.”
Others said the economy was in a tenuous position.
“At this pace of job growth, unemployment will continue to push higher, and this, despite weaker labor force participation,” Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, wrote on X. “None of this signals recession, but it does signal the job market and economy are increasingly fragile as the fallout from the global trade war intensifies.”
Tariffs are taxes or duties paid by importers on goods they bring in from foreign markets.
Mr. Trump says tariffs are a great way to force companies to return to America or keep their operations in the U.S., employ American workers and create revenue to fund domestic programs.
Foreign countries don’t pay the tariffs directly to the U.S. Treasury. In many cases, U.S. companies will pay the levies, and they might pass on at least some of the cost to consumers through higher prices.
Mr. Trump’s love of tariffs is driven by his desire to close trade deficits — situations in which the U.S. imports from a country far exceed what American producers export to that country.
He says too many countries tap into the rich American market while closing their doors to U.S. producers who want to sell their products abroad.
Mr. Trump proposed “Liberation Day” tariffs in April that were heftier than expected. While he paused the biggest tariffs for 90 days, a blanket 10% tariff on imports went into effect alongside sector-specific tariffs on steel, aluminum, automobiles and car parts made outside the U.S.
Some economists say trade deficits are not inherently bad, despite Mr. Trump’s push to eliminate them.
Americans can benefit from trade by getting cheaper products that improve their spending power, and certain countries have geographic or workforce advantages that make their products desirable.
Some critics say Mr. Trump should take a narrower approach, such as limiting tariffs to products like steel and select industries.
Recently, the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that Mr. Trump overstepped his authority by imposing sweeping tariffs on other nations. An appeals court paused the implementation of that ruling.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.