April 4, 2025
The National News Desk recently published an article featuring Mark Williams, Master Lecturer of Finance, discussing how Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has expressed growing concern about the economic risks posed by President Trump’s newly announced sweeping tariffs.
These “reciprocal” tariffs, which impose double-digit import duties and target countries with trade imbalances, have triggered significant market volatility and renewed fears of a global trade war. Powell has cautioned that the tariffs are likely to drive up inflation, possibly in a more sustained way than previously anticipated, while simultaneously slowing economic growth. This dual threat places the Fed in a challenging position, as it weighs the need to curb inflation against the risk of undermining economic stability.
“They could fight inflation, but then that’s going to not allow for economic stability, and it could actually even help push the economy into recession sooner. This could require the Fed to reduce rates coming up to this next meeting, just to try to give the economy a little bit of help,” Williams adds.
The central bank is holding its benchmark rate steady for now, monitoring how the tariffs impact inflation and growth before making any decisions.