As job market slumps, Trump administration says it could take a year to see better economic data [View all]

Source: Reuters

September 5, 2025 12:49 PM EDT Updated 3 hours ago


WASHINGTON, Sept 5 (Reuters) - The White House said it expects the Federal Reserve to weigh larger rate cuts this month after Friday's "disappointing" jobs report, while President Donald Trump and his administration said it could be a year before the U.S. sees rosier economic data.

"The main market expectation is 25 basis points. But I would guess that there would be an expectation, a discussion of a higher cut, but I wouldn't expect it to happen," White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told reporters at the White House after the Labor Department report showed weaker job growth in August and the unemployment rate rising to 4.3%.

Trump for months has been pushing the U.S. central bank to lower its benchmark rates, saying the cuts are needed to bolster his economic policies and fuel growth even as some critics have raised questions about threats to the Fed's independence. "Jerome 'Too Late' Powell should have lowered rates long ago. As usual, he’s 'Too Late!'" Trump posted on social media following the jobs data.

Friday's dim jobs data has raised some alarm bells and is seen likely to push Fed policymakers to seek to shore up the softening job market with at least a 25-basis-point rate cut when they meet September 16-17. "It's a little bit of a disappointing job number, but I pretty much expect it's going to revise up," Hassett told CNBC in a separate interview, citing the housing sector in particular.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/job-market-slumps-trump-administration-says-it-could-take-year-see-better-2025-09-05/