The Federal Reserve didn’t cave to pressure from President Donald Trump and held interest rates steady in its July meeting — one that, for the first time in over 30 years, saw two dissenting votes from board members pushing for an immediate cut.
But that decision may now backfire, as Friday’s labor market data showed early signs of weakness.
July’s payroll growth was deeply disappointing, with just 73,000 jobs added — far short of the expected 110,000. Even more troubling were the massive downward revisions to May and June figures, slashing previously reported job gains by a combined 258,000.
On the inflation front, things aren’t going the Fed’s way either. The Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index jumped …