Trump Says Will Demand Interest Rates Drop 'Immediately'

President Donald Trump smiles as he signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
President Donald Trump smiles as he signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
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Trump Says Will Demand Interest Rates Drop 'Immediately'

President Donald Trump smiles as he signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
President Donald Trump smiles as he signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

US President Donald Trump said Thursday he would seek to bring interest rates lower by unleashing energy production, and would speak to the Federal Reserve if needed.

"I'll demand that interest rates drop immediately," he told the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in a virtual address. "Likewise, they should be dropping all over the world. Interest rates should follow us all over."

The US Federal Reserve has a dual mandate from Congress to act independently to keep inflation and employment in check, primarily by raising and lowering the level of short-term interest rates, according to AFP.

As US president, Trump does not have a say over interest rate decisions, a fact that he has frequently criticized.

Trump told reporters in Washington later on Thursday that he would like to see interest rates come down "a lot," adding that lower oil prices should help them to fall.

"When the oil comes down, it'll bring down prices, he said. "Then you won't have inflation, and then the interest rates will come down."

Asked what he would do if the Fed did not lower interest rates, Trump said he would "put in a strong statement" and expected officials to listen to his views, adding that he would consider talking to Fed chair Jerome Powell if needed.

"I think I know interest rates much better than they do," he said. "And I think I know certainly much better than the one who's primarily in charge of making that decision."

"I'm guided by them very much, " he added. "But if I disagree, I will let it be known."



Iran's IRGC Detains Two Britons on Spying Charges

Traffic flows through a congested highway in Tehran on January 18, 2025. (AFP)
Traffic flows through a congested highway in Tehran on January 18, 2025. (AFP)
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Iran's IRGC Detains Two Britons on Spying Charges

Traffic flows through a congested highway in Tehran on January 18, 2025. (AFP)
Traffic flows through a congested highway in Tehran on January 18, 2025. (AFP)

Iranian authorities said Tuesday that a British couple, arrested last month by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the country’s southeast, have been charged with espionage and accused of links to Western intelligence services.

Iran’s Judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir said Craig and Lindsay Foreman had entered Iran “posing as tourists” and gathered information before their arrest in Kerman province.

Jahangir also said the pair had been held by the IRGC “over espionage charges.”

The Foremans “had gathered information from several provinces” and were found to be “cooperating with covert institutions linked to the intelligence services of hostile and Western countries,” the spokesman said, according to AFP.

According to the judiciary’s Mizan Online website, the Kerman judiciary chief Ebrahim Hamidi said the couple’s links to foreign intelligence services “has been confirmed.”

BBC said the couple, in their early 50s, were on a motorbike trip around the world when they were detained in January.

Social media posts show the duo crossed into Iran from Armenia in December and were gradually making their way toward Australia.

On Friday, Britain’s Foreign Office confirmed that it was “providing consular assistance to two British nationals detained in Iran” and was in contact with Iranian authorities.

Last Saturday, the couple’s family said they were engaging with relevant authorities to ensure the pair's well-being and safe return home.

Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported last week that British Ambassador Hugo Shorter met with the couple at the Kerman prosecutor’s office.

The agency also published a photo of the meeting, with the couple’s faces blurred.

A statement issued by the British Foreign Office on their family's behalf said: “This unexpected turn of events has caused significant concern for our entire family, and we are deeply focused on ensuring their safety and wellbeing during this trying time.”

The family called it a “distressing situation,” adding: “We are actively engaging with the British government and relevant authorities, working diligently to navigate the complexities of this matter.”

The IRGC have arrested dozens of foreigners and dual nationals in recent years, mostly on espionage and security-related charges.

Human rights groups and some Western countries have accused Iran of trying to win concessions from other nations through arrests on security charges that may have been trumped up. Tehran denies such accusations.

In January 2023, Iran announced the execution of British-Iranian dual citizen Alireza Akbari, prompting outrage among Western governments including Britain, which called it “barbaric.”