President Trump speaks to reporters about coronavirus, 2020 Democrats and the Federal Reserve.
Hours after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell attempted to calm the panic selling on Wall Street that plagued investors all week, President Trump did not hold back lambasting the U.S. central bank.
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DOW TUMBLES OVER 3,500 POINTS FOR WEEK
“I hope the Fed gets involved, I am not a big fan of the Fed, they make a lot of mistakes,” said Trump before departing for his rally in North Charleston, South Carolina. “They’ve done this country a great disservice” he added.
Trump has a long track record of publicly criticizing the Fed, usually via Twitter, for keeping rates too high.
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Earlier on Friday, Powell released a statement that appeared to be aimed at soothing investor unrest as U.S. stocks were heading to the worst week since the financial crisis.
“The fundamentals of the U.S. economy remain strong. However, the coronavirus poses evolving risks to economic activity. The Federal Reserve is closely monitoring developments and their implications for the economic outlook. We will use our tools and act as appropriate to support the economy.”
FED’S POWELL ISSUES RARE WARNING
Economists and traders viewed the statement as a sign the Fed will cut interest rates at the March meeting or perhaps even sooner. Trump also complained that other central banks, such as Germany, are cutting rates and “stuffing the til,” he added. Lower rates offer cheaper borrowing opportunities.
FED UNDER PRESSURE TO DO SOMETHING
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost over 12 percent or more than 3,583 points for the week. The S&P fell over 11 percent and the Nasdaq 10.5 percent.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 25409.36 | -357.28 | -1.39% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 2954.22 | -24.54 | -0.82% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 8567.367588 | +0.89 | +0.01% |
