Trump Demands Action from Jerome Powell as Wholesale Inflation Report Stuns Economists

President Donald Trump is calling on Federal Reserve Bank Chairman Jerome Powell to lower interest rates immediately following the release of new August inflation data Wednesday.

“Just out: No Inflation!!! ‘Too Late’ must lower the RATE, BIG, right now. Powell is a total disaster, who doesn’t have a clue!!!” the president posted on Truth Social.

CNBC reported, “The producer price index, which measures input costs across a broad array of goods and services, dropped 0.1% for the month, after a downwardly revised 0.7% increase in July and well off the Dow Jones estimate for a 0.3% rise. On a 12-month basis, the headline PPI saw a 2.6% gain.”

“The core PPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, also was off 0.1% after being expected to climb 0.3% as well. Excluding food, energy and trade, the PPI posted a 0.3% gain and was up 2.8% from a year ago,” the news outlet added.

CNBC host Becky Quick responded to the report, saying, “That’s a real shocker … the idea that inflation is so much weaker than anticipated.”

Additionally, the network’s Rick Santelli said, “I’m surprised. Real progress here: 2.6 percent on year-over-year headline. We were expecting 3.3 [percent].”

“It underscores, whether it was tariff-driven or not, those little blips [in inflation increases earlier this year] seem to be moving back into the sunset,” he added.

Allianz Chief Economic Advisor Mohamed El-Erian argued, based on the reports, that consumers are picking up the smallest percentage of the tab under Trump’s tariff policies.

“There’s the exporter, there’s the importer, and there’s the consumer, and so far the consumer is carrying the least of the burden,” he said.

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The economist contended that companies are examining prices, product by product, and deciding what the consumer can bear.

“They’re finding out they cannot pass through as much of the price increase as they want,” El-Erian said.

He further observed, “What we’re learning is that the final impact [of tariffs] on the consumer is much less than people expected.”

El-Erian concluded, “This [inflation] number now, if the Fed is truly data dependent, the question should be, ‘Why not 50 [basis points]?’”

The current Federal Reserve target rate is 4.25 to 4.5 percent. A 50 basis point cut would bring it down to 3.75 to 4 percent.

Cutting interest rates makes both mortgage rates and consumer credit rates less expensive, which can stimulate economic growth.

In June, Trump published a public note to Powell written on a chart of other nations’ interest rates around the world. Trump wrote, “Jerome, you are, as usual, ‘too late.’ You have cost the USA a fortune — and continue to do so.” The U.S. rate was among the highest in the industrialized world.

“You should lower the rate — by a lot! Hundreds of billions of dollars being lost! No inflation,” he added.

The Federal Reserve Board meets next week and is expected to vote to lower the interest rate.

Randy DeSoto has written more than 3,000 articles for The Western Journal since he began with the company in 2015. He is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book “We Hold These Truths” and screenwriter of the political documentary “I Want Your Money.”

Birthplace

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Nationality

American

Honors/Awards

Graduated dean’s list from West Point

Education

United States Military Academy at West Point, Regent University School of Law

Books Written

We Hold These Truths

Professional Memberships

Virginia and Pennsylvania state bars

Location

Phoenix, Arizona

Languages Spoken

English

Topics of Expertise

Politics, Entertainment, Faith

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