Trump calls for interest rate cuts and cheaper oil: President sets the scene for a clash with Fed
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Donald Trump last night set the scene for a clash with the US Federal Reserve after he demanded an immediate cut in interest rates. Addressing the World Economic Forum in Davos by video link, the US President said borrowing costs in America and around the world ‘should be dropping’.
He also said he wants to lower global oil prices as he set out his wide-ranging agenda to business leaders and politicians gathered in the Swiss ski resort. ‘I’ll demand that interest rates drop immediately. And likewise, they should be dropping all over the world,’ Trump said.
‘I’m also going to ask Saudi Arabia and Opec to bring down the cost of oil.’. The demand for an immediate fall in interest rates is likely to raise eyebrows at the Fed, the US central bank, ahead of next week’s meeting when officials will make their next move on borrowing costs.
Rate cuts: President Trump (pictured) said borrowing costs in America and around the world ‘should be dropping’. The Fed, led by chairman Jerome Powell, is independent of the government – just as the Bank of England is in the UK. It cut interest rates three times last year, with the final cut to between 4.25 per cent and 4.5 per cent coming in December, but is widely expected to make no change next week.
