Fed's Stephen Miran says he wants half-point interest rate cut this month

Stephen Miran – the newest Fed governor appointed by President Trump – said Thursday he plans to push for a half-point interest rate cut at the central bank’s meeting later this month.

Policymakers are largely expected to trim rates by another quarter point on Oct. 29, as they did last month.

But Miran has argued that a quicker rate-cut path is necessary as trade tensions and heightened economic uncertainty amplify risks to economic growth. 3

“If monetary policy stays as restrictive as it is, and you have a shock like this hit the economy, it does materially increase the negative consequences of that shock,” he told Fox Business on Thursday.

Miran argued that Trump’s trade war with China over rare earths only makes the case for rate cuts more urgent.

Still, he conceded that