U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday redoubled his calls for Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to lower interest rates, noting that payroll processing firm ADP reported that job creation slowed in May.
“ADP number out. ‘Too Late’ Powell must now lower the rate. He is unbelievable. Europe has lowered nine times,” Trump said in a Truth Social post.
ADP reported on Wednesday that U.S. private payrolls increased far less than expected in May, increasing by only 37,000 jobs last month after a 60,000 rise in April that was revised downward. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast private employment increasing 110,000 following a previously reported gain of 62,000 in April.
Wednesday’s ADP data came ahead of a more comprehensive employment report that will be released on Friday by the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Trump, a Republican, has hammered Powell for months in often personal attacks, with his calls for the Fed chair’s resignation weighing on U.S. stocks and financial markets.
Trump’s repeated attacks have raised questions about the continued independence of the U.S. central bank under the Trump administration, although the U.S. president last month said he would not remove the Fed chair before his term ends in May 2026.
Sectors including business services, and education and health shed jobs, pointing to a weakened demand for workers. Economists anticipate the US labour market will show more signs of cooling in the coming months. The Federal Reserve’s rate setting committee is scheduled to meet on June 17-18 and announce the monetary policy decision.
The central bank kept interest rate steady at 4.25-4.5% range in its May meeting for the third time in a row, highlighting the uncertainty over the health of the US economy from the tariff wars sparked by Trump.
Powell had then said the risks of higher unemployment and inflation have risen, and the current policy stance leaves the Fed “well positioned” to address economic developments “in a timely manner.
The US President has on previous occasions assailed Powell on the topic of interest rates. After Trump’s first meeting with the Fed Chair on May 29, the Federal Reserve stated that the two discussed the economy, but not Powell’s outlook for interest rates.
The argument put forward in favour of the rate cut by Trump is that there is “no inflation” and so Powell should cut rates, though such a move might not necessarily reduce the borrowing costs consumers face.
