Fed Cuts Interest Rates by a Quarter Point

The decision to lower the federal funds rate to 4.75% follows September's larger, half-point cut. The Federal Reserve said it looks to encourage "years of real wage gains" to compensate for high inflation from 2021 to 2023.

Key Quote: The unemployment rate is notably higher than it was a year ago, but has edged down over the past three months and remains low at 4.1%," said Fed Chair Jerome Powell. "Overall, a broad set of indicators suggest that conditions in the labor market are now less tight than just before the pandemic in 2019. The labor market is not a source of significant inflationary pressures."

How the Left Covered It: CNN (Lean Left bias) said in a headline the "the timing [of the cut] is undeniably awkward," presumably referring to Trump's election, but didn't elaborate. It characterized market reactions to the news as small and devoted much coverage to the prospect of Trump undermining Fed independence.

How the Right Covered It: Several outlets on the right included in their headline that the decision was the first "since Trump's win." Daily Caller (Right) mentioned a September letter from three Democratic senators to the Fed advocating for an "aggressive move," speculating they sought a rate cut to help Kamala Harris in the election. The letter doesn't state that as a goal, but cites "inflation moving towards [the Fed's] target of 2 percent and data indicating slower job growth".

How the Center Covered It: Forbes (Center) wrote that Trump's proposed economic policies "have some economists questioning the path of interest rates heading into next year." It walked through the previous "whirlwind four years for monetary policy" in a slightly sensational manner.