Hedge fund mogul Griffin: The Federal Reserve may cut interest rates again this year

According to the Zhitong Finance APP, Ken Griffin, the famous hedge fund manager and founder and CEO of Citadel Investment, stated that he expects the Federal Reserve to lower the benchmark interest rate again in 2025, as the central bank is shifting its focus to the labor market. In an interview on Thursday, Griffin said, "I think they will cut rates once or even twice more this year. The Federal Reserve is feeling nervous about the labor market because we are indeed seeing a decline in the number of new jobs." The U.S. labor market is beginning to show signs of weakness, with the unemployment rate rising to 4.3% in August, the highest level since 2021. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell stated last week that signs of a cooling job market are becoming increasingly evident, at which time the Federal Reserve lowered the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points. Griffin stated, "In terms of the labor market, it's hard for us to know exactly what the current situation is. But what we can be sure of is that without an influx of immigrants, U.S. population growth will slow significantly, which will reduce our ability to create new jobs." Griffin has consistently advocated for the Federal Reserve to maintain its independence. Earlier this month, Griffin pointed out in a commentary that preserving the independent structure of the Federal Reserve is in the best interest of U.S. President Donald Trump. Griffin said, "He wants to lower interest rates, and what I would tell you is that if I were president, I would let the Federal Reserve do its job. I would give the Federal Reserve as much perceived and actual independence as possible because the Federal Reserve often has to make some quite difficult choices." Griffin also opposed Trump's proposal to allow publicly traded companies to report financial results every six months instead of quarterly. Griffin stated that he does not understand the benefits of withholding information from the market. Griffin said, "In today's era, reporting quarterly makes sense."