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From CNBC: The Federal Reserve on Wednesday kept interest rates steady amid expectations of higher inflation and lower economic growth ahead, and still pointed to two reductions later this year.
With markets expecting no chance of a central bank move this week, the Federal Open Market Committee kept its key borrowing rate targeted in a range between 4.25%-4.5%, where it has been since December.
Along with the rate decision, the committee indicated, through its closely watched “dot plot,” that two cuts by the end of 2025 are still on the table. However, it lopped off one reduction for both 2026 and 2027, putting the expected future rate cuts at four, or a full percentage point.
The plot indicated continued uncertainty from Fed officials about the future of rates. Each dot represents one official’s expectations for rates. There was a wide dispersion on the matrix, with an outlook pointing to a fed funds rate around 3.4% in 2027.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized Powell for not lowering interest rates, but has so far said he will not fire him.
Trump ripped into Powell earlier Wednesday morning, saying, “I think he hates me, he should, I call him every name in the book trying to get him to do something. I’ve been nice to him… I call him ‘too late.’ ‘Come on, too late, let’s have dinner.'”
“I’ve done it every way in the book, I’ve been nasty and nice,” Trump quipped.
Trump said Powell is a “stupid person” who has done a poor job.
President Trump on Fed Chair Powell: “We have a stupid person, frankly, at the Fed. He probably won’t cut today…Maybe I should go to the Fed. Am I allowed to appoint myself at the Fed?” pic.twitter.com/AXA9maxJou
— CSPAN (@cspan) June 18, 2025
Read Chair Powell’s full opening statement from the #FOMC press conference (PDF): https://t.co/Erv2AAh9U1 pic.twitter.com/4MDZvSWcNc
— Federal Reserve (@federalreserve) June 18, 2025
In his announcement Wednesday, Powell used Trump’s tariff’s as justification for keeping interest rates high.
Powell: If you look at what is happening, this is since March, slower growth, a .1 tick up in unemployment and inflation moving up by .3. That’s what you see. You see the effects of tariffs. pic.twitter.com/YBcEs4bGSD
— Acyn (@Acyn) June 18, 2025
Multiple conservatives are accusing Powell of trying to thwart Trump’s progress.
ALL THE PROOF YOU NEED:
Since Trump took office, the European Central Bank (ECB) has cut interest rates THREE TIMES. Jerome Powell and the FED have cut interest rates ZERO times.
Clearly, Powell is on a mission to slow the Trump economic miracle. pic.twitter.com/sZL7vDGLP0
— Bill Mitchell (@mitchellvii) June 12, 2025
Of course the biased Fed & their Never Trump Chairman Jerome Powell paused again on any Interest Rate cuts
This graphic alone tells us he/they were rooting hard for Democrats to take the White House & both houses of Congress last Nov
Now we’re more vulnerable & less competitive pic.twitter.com/Lm4tfEBvLG
— Bill Peguillan (@BillPegs) June 18, 2025
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