US Senate Urges Powell to 'Resist Trump’s Pressure for Interest Rate Cuts'

Republican and Democratic Lawmakers Emphasize Bipartisan Fed Independence
One Day Before, Lawmakers Reacted Against Trump's Interest Rate Cut Pressure
Powell Expresses Ongoing Concerns Over Tax Cuts Impact and Federal Budget Deficit Expansion

Jerome Powell, Fed Chair [Photo by AP News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] As U.S. President Donald Trump continues to pressure the central bank, the Federal Reserve (Fed), to cut interest rates, the U.S. Senate has come out with bipartisan support for the Fed's political independence.

Despite growing conflicts between the Republican and Democratic parties over the presidential election and impeachment, they have unusually spoken with one voice on economic issues. This contrasts with the day before when President Trump pressured for a rate cut.

According to the Associated Press, Senator John Kennedy (Republican) said before the testimony of Fed Chair Jerome Powell at the Senate Banking Committee, "I think you are doing a good job," and urged, "Please maintain your independence."

Senator Mark Warner (Democrat) also said, "If we see any attempts to undermine the Fed's independence, please let our committee know." He added, "The Fed's independence has become more important than before."

Republican Senator Mike Rounds and Democratic Senators Jon Tester and Jack Reed expressed similar positions.

Regarding this, the Associated Press interpreted, "President Trump is putting pressure on the Fed and Chair Powell, but he is not receiving support even from his own party."

The day before, President Trump tweeted again pressuring for a rate cut, saying, "The Federal Reserve's benchmark interest rate is too high, and the strong dollar is a hindrance to exports."

Chair Powell appeared before the House Financial Services Committee the day before and expressed satisfaction with the current benchmark rate of 1.5?1.75%, indicating his intention to continue the existing monetary policy stance.

Chair Powell expressed strong confidence in the U.S. labor market but repeatedly voiced concerns about the massive federal budget deficit caused by the Trump administration's tax cut policies.

Meanwhile, according to a U.S. Treasury Department announcement on the same day, the federal government's budget deficit for the first quarter of fiscal year 2020, from October last year to January this year, reached $389 billion, a 20% increase compared to the same period last year.

Additionally, in his Senate testimony that day, Chair Powell mentioned regarding the spread of COVID-19, "Its impact could be significant for China." On trade issues, he assessed, "As uncertainty decreases, it could have a positive effect on investment."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.