Donald Trump

According to the latest data, a sharp decline in imports triggered by President Donald Trump’s tariff policy helped boost U.S. economic growth between April and June.

The world’s largest economy grew at a rate of 3% per year after shrinking in the first three months of the year, the Commerce Department said.

The rebound that is larger than expected reflects trade volatility after companies are rushing to bring goods to Trump’s taxes, which do not necessarily indicate a broader economic health situation.

Still, the U.S. president used the data to target U.S. Central Bank Chairman Jerome Powell ahead of the interest rate decision late Wednesday.

Trump wrote on social media that he nicknamed Fed Chairman Powell by his “Mr. Too Late”: “The economic figures are better than expected!

When the economy struggles, the U.S. Federal Reserve usually lowers interest rates, if inflation (measures the pace of price growth) raises interest rates, too fast.

The bank has been reluctant to take one or another this year, saying it wants to understand how tariffs and other new policies, including tax cuts, will affect the economy.

Recent data show that inflation fell to 2.1% from 3.7% in the January-March period in the three months to June.

Some analysts say the rebound in economic growth between April and June is likely to exacerbate the argument that the bank has the ability to wait.

“In December, until December leads to lower interest rates, the resilience of the economy will keep the Fed stationary and evaluate the impact of tariffs on consumer prices,” said Bernard Yaros, an American economist at Oxford Economics.

Many details of the report Wednesday were consistent with an economy that cooled but was not seriously troubled.

Consumer spending grew 1.4%, up from 0.5% in the January-March period, but grew much slower than last year.

As the Department of Defense cuts areas outside the Department of Defense, commercial investment has eased and federal spending has also fallen.

The Commerce Department said the separate gauges that track consumer spending and investments have slowed to 1.2% from 1.9%.

Some economists believe that the measure is a more helpful indicator given trade volatility.

Wellington-Jim Thorne, chief market strategist at Alters Private Wealth, told the BBC’s opening clock, “Forgot the headlines.” “Basic data shows that the economy is losing momentum.”

Although he added: “The good news is that price pressures are starting to ease.”