Trump expects Fed to lower interest rates this week

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday said he expected the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates at this week's key meeting.

"I think you have a big cut," Trump told reporters on Sunday, saying that "It's perfect for cutting."

He said the energy and grocery prices in the U.S. have fallen, but the real estate market is still lagging behind due to the Fed's policy.

The Federal Reserve will announce its interest rate decision on Wednesday. The market generally expects a new round of interest rate cuts, and the current question is whether the rate cut will be 50 basis points or 25 basis points.

On Sunday, Trump also said Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell "is incompetent," adding that he has three candidates that "would do a good job."

Trump has for months intended to replace Powell, whose term will expire in May 2026, for not lowering interest rates.

Trump expects Fed to lower interest rates this week

Trump expects Fed to lower interest rates this week

China's outstanding aggregate social financing -- the total amount of financing to the real economy -- reached 442.12 trillion yuan (about 63.4 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of 2025, up 8.3 percent year on year, central bank data showed on Thursday.

The country's aggregate social financing stood at 35.6 trillion yuan (about 5.1 trillion U.S. dollars) in 2025, up by 3.34 trillion yuan (about 479 billion U.S. dollars) from the year 2024, said the People's Bank of China (PBOC), the country's central bank.

According to the data, the M2, a broad measure of money supply that covers cash in circulation and all deposits, increased 8.5 percent year on year to 340.29 trillion yuan (about 48.8 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of December.

In addition, outstanding yuan loans stood at 271.91 trillion yuan (about 39 trillion U.S. dollars) at the end of 2025, up 6.4 percent year on year.

China's aggregate social financing maintains high growth in 2025