Trump again attacks Fed chair, says Powell ‘hurting' the housing industry
Mr Trump's online attacks on the Fed and Mr Powell more typically focus on the cost that higher interest rates mean for US government borrowing.
WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump said on Aug 19 that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is 'hurting' the housing industry 'very badly' and repeated his call for a big cut to US interest rates.
'Could somebody please inform Jerome 'Too Late' Powell that he is hurting the Housing Industry, very badly? People can't get a Mortgage because of him. There is no Inflation, and every sign is pointing to a major Rate Cut,' Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Inflation is well off the highs seen during the Covid-19 pandemic, but some recent data has given a mixed picture, and inflation continues to track above the Fed's per cent target range.
Mr Trump's latest salvo against Mr Powell comes ahead of the Fed chair's August 22 speech at the annual Jackson Hole central banking symposium, where investors will cleave to his every word for hints on his economic outlook and the likelihood of a coming reduction to short-term borrowing costs.
The Fed's next policy meeting will be held on September 16-17.
Investors and economists are betting the Fed will cut rates by a quarter of a percentage point in September with perhaps another reduction of similar size to come later in the year, far less than the several percentage points that Mr Trump has called for.
Mr Trump's Treasury secretary, Mr Scott Bessent, has promoted the idea of a half-point rate cut in September.
The US central bank cut its policy rate half a percentage point last September, just before the presidential election, and trimmed it another half of a percentage point in the two months immediately following Mr Trump's electoral victory, but has held it steady in the 4.25 per cent - 4.50 per cent range for all of 2025.
Fed policymakers have worried that Mr Trump's tariffs could reignite inflation and also felt the labour market was strong enough not to require a boost from lower borrowing costs.
Mixed inflation picture
The Consumer Price Index rose 0.2 per cent in July, with the 12-month rate through July at 2.7 per cent, unchanged from June.
Core CPI, which strips out the volatile food and energy components, increased 3.1 per cent year-over-year in July.
Based in part on that data, economists estimated the core Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index rose 0.3 per cent in July.
That would raise the year-on-year increase to 3 per cent in July. The PCE is a key measure tracked by the Fed against its own 2 per cent inflation target.
And despite a moderate rise in overall consumer prices in July, producer and import prices jumped, a suggestion that higher consumer prices could be coming as sellers pass higher costs onto households.
The inflation picture comes amid a picture of a possible cooling in the labour market, with declines in monthly job gains, although the unemployment rate, at 4.2 per cent, remains low by historical standards.
Mr Trump's online attacks on the Fed and Mr Powell more typically focus on the cost that higher interest rates mean for US government borrowing.
High mortgage rates are a key pain point for potential home buyers who are also facing high and rising home prices due to a dearth of housing supply.
Mortgage rates can be loosely tied to the Fed's overnight benchmark rate but more closely track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which typically rises and falls based on investors' expectations for economic growth and inflation.
A Fed rate cut does not always mean lower long-term rates – indeed after the Fed cut rates last September, mortgage rates – which had been on the decline – rose sharply.
In recent weeks, the most popular rate - the 30-year fixed mortgage rate – has drifted downward but – at around 6.7 per cent most recently – is still much higher than it had been before inflation took off after the pandemic shock and the Fed began its rate-hike campaign in 2022. REUTERS
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
15 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Myanmar junta claims town captured, expanding election reach
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The embattled junta plans to hold elections in areas it controls starting on Dec 28, and has been pressing a series of counter-offensives to expand the territory it holds. Yangon - Myanmar's junta said on Aug 20 its troops had captured a key town in the east after a 16-day battle, clawing back rebel-contested territory as it prepares for a disputed December election. Demoso, 105km east of the capital Naypyitaw, has witnessed intense fighting since the military's overthrow of the democratic government in 2021 sparked a civil war. The embattled junta plans to hold elections in areas it controls starting on Dec 28, and has been pressing a series of counter-offensives to expand the territory it holds. The polls have been criticised by international monitors as a tactic to rebrand the rule of the military, which has kept democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi jailed since ousting her. State mouthpiece newspaper the Global New Light of Myanmar said the military captured Demoso township – encompassing the town and surrounding countryside – after a 16-day battle that ended on Aug 19. However, one resident said there was still a constant drumbeat of gunfire, heavy weapons and air strikes and denied that the military had total command of the area. 'The fighting is close and I'm always afraid in my heart whenever I hear explosions,' said 26-year-old Moe Moe. 'We are very worried, especially in the night-time as we can't sleep.' Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 18 persons nabbed and 82 vapes seized in HSA ops in Raffles Place and Haji Lane Singapore 3 Sengkang Green Primary pupils suspended for bullying schoolmate, with 1 of them caned: MOE Singapore Woman trapped between train doors: Judge rules SBS Transit '100% responsible' Singapore Religion growing in importance for Singaporeans: IPS study Life 'Loss that's irreplaceable': Local film-makers mourn closure of Singapore indie cinema The Projector Singapore COE premiums up in all categories except motorcycles; Cat A price climbs 2.5% to $104,524 Singapore Nearly 2 years' jail, caning for man caught with at least 100 sexually explicit videos of children Singapore Grab users in Singapore shocked by fares of over $1,000 due to display glitch 'If they actually controlled this area we would see them in person, but there are none now near us,' she said. The Global New Light of Myanmar said six bodies were recovered after pro-democracy guerrillas and fighters from ethnic armed organisations in the area were driven out. 'Some of the security force members were wounded and deceased,' it said, without giving further details. A photo showed junta soldiers posing with their rifles aloft in front of a sign reading: 'You are warmly welcomed to Demoso.' More than 130,000 people have been displaced in the state of Kayah, where Demoso sits on the crossroads of two highways branching off from the main route linking Naypyitaw and the commercial capital Yangon. The junta-organised election will be held in phases and is expected to take weeks. Conflict monitors say the run-up is likely to see a further spike in violence as the junta attempts to expand the reach of the vote into enclaves controlled by its opponents. A junta-organised census, held as preparation for the election, failed to contact nearly four out of 10 people in the country of more than 50 million, indicating how limited the poll might be. Some democratic lawmakers ousted in the coup have called for a boycott, while Ms Suu Kyi's immensely popular National League for Democracy party has been dissolved. 'The terrorist military group is attempting to stage an illegitimate and fraudulent election to sustain its grip on power,' the National Unity Government, a self-proclaimed administration in exile, said in a statement. 'All revolutionary groups are urged to stand united with the people in resisting and overcoming this trap,' it said. AFP
Straits Times
15 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Trump administration imposes fresh sanctions on four ICC officials
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump's administration on Wednesday imposed sanctions on two judges and two prosecutors at the International Criminal Court, as Washington kept up its pressure on the war tribunal over its targeting of Israeli leaders. Washington designated Nicolas Yann Guillou of France, Nazhat Shameem Khan of Fiji, Mame Mandiaye Niang of Senegal, and Kimberly Prost of Canada, according to the U.S. Treasury and State Department. ICC judges issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Israeli defense chief Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Ibrahim al-Masri last November for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Gaza conflict. Guillou is an ICC judge who presided over a pre-trial panel that issued the arrest warrant for Netanyahu. Khan and Niang are the court's two deputy prosecutors. The move comes less than three months after the administration took the unprecedented step of slapping sanctions on four separate ICC judges, saying they have engaged in ICC's "illegitimate and baseless actions" targeting the U.S. and close ally Israel. ICC, which had slammed the move in June, describing it as an attempt to undermine the independence of the judicial institution, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The ICC, which was established in 2002, has international jurisdiction to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes in member states or if a situation is referred by the U.N. Security Council. The United States, China, Russia, and Israel are not members. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 18 persons nabbed and 82 vapes seized in HSA ops in Raffles Place and Haji Lane Singapore 3 Sengkang Green Primary pupils suspended for bullying schoolmate, with 1 of them caned: MOE Singapore Woman trapped between train doors: Judge rules SBS Transit '100% responsible' Singapore Religion growing in importance for Singaporeans: IPS study Life 'Loss that's irreplaceable': Local film-makers mourn closure of Singapore indie cinema The Projector Singapore COE premiums up in all categories except motorcycles; Cat A price climbs 2.5% to $104,524 Singapore Nearly 2 years' jail, caning for man caught with at least 100 sexually explicit videos of children Singapore Grab users in Singapore shocked by fares of over $1,000 due to display glitch It has high-profile war crimes investigations under way into the Israel-Hamas conflict and Russia's war in Ukraine, as well as in Sudan, Myanmar, the Philippines, Venezuela, and Afghanistan. The sanctions freeze any U.S. assets the individuals may have and essentially cut them off from the U.S. financial system. REUTERS
CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Trump calls for Fed governor to resign, widening pressure on central bank
WASHINGTON: United States President Donald Trump called on Wednesday (Aug 20) for Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook to step down, expanding pressure on the central bank after recent criticism of Fed Chair Jerome Powell for not lowering interest rates sooner. "Cook must resign, now!!!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, while sharing a Bloomberg news report on how the Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA) director has called for greater scrutiny of Cook over a pair of mortgages. FHFA director Bill Pulte - a staunch ally of Trump's - had reportedly written a letter to the US Attorney General calling for an investigation of Cook while suggesting that she might have committed a criminal offence. It was not immediately clear if such a probe will take place. The Trump administration has pursued allegations of mortgage fraud against high-profile Democrats who are seen as political adversaries of the president. The US leader's targeting of Cook, who sits on the central bank's rate-setting committee, comes after his repeated broadsides against Powell while the Fed kept the benchmark lending rate unchanged this year. Cook took office as a Fed governor in May 2022 and was reappointed to the board in September 2023. She was sworn in later that same month for a term ending in 2038. Cook has previously served on the Council of Economic Advisers under former President Barack Obama. In recent months, Trump has called Powell a "numbskull" and "moron" as the central bank held rates steady to monitor the effects of US tariffs on inflation. Trump had also previously suggested that what he said is an overly costly renovation of the Fed's headquarters could be a reason to oust Powell, before backing off the threat.
