On Wednesday, President Donald Trump once again called on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to immediately lower interest rates, citing data that shows private sector job growth in May has hit its lowest level in the past two years.
Trump posted on “Truth Social,” saying, “ADP data is out… Powell must lower rates now… Europe has already lowered rates nine times!”
ADP (Automatic Data Processing) is a company that provides human capital management (HCM) solutions and outsourcing services, including payroll management, human resources management, and talent management, processing payrolls for a large portion of employees in the private sector in the United States.
The ADP report shows that nonfarm employment increased by 37,000 in May, lower than the 60,000 increase in April, and the lowest monthly gain since March 2023.
He lamented, “Too late! Unreasonable!”
The ADP report also shows that in May, the annual wage growth rate for stable employees was 4.5%, while for job switchers it was 7%.
Previously, Trump had criticized the Federal Reserve for maintaining unchanged interest rates.
Last week, President Trump met with Powell. The White House stated that the president told Powell: the policy of not lowering interest rates is a mistake.
Powell told reporters before the meeting that he did not actively seek a meeting with President Trump, never requested a meeting with any president, and would not do so during his term. He stated that the Federal Reserve is waiting to observe the impact of President Trump’s trade policies and tax plan on the US economy.
The Bank of Canada has lowered interest rates twice at the beginning of the year, keeping the key benchmark rate unchanged at 2.75% on Wednesday, but indicating that there may be a need for further rate cuts if the economy weakens due to tariffs. The European Central Bank (ECB) is expected to lower interest rates on Thursday, marking the seventh consecutive rate cut and the eighth since the current easing cycle began in June last year.
The Reserve Bank of India may lower rates by 25 basis points on Friday, with another cut expected in August.
On May 20, six major state-owned banks in China announced a cut in deposit rates, and six private banks had already announced rate cuts at the beginning of May.