Tariff Chaos Fuels Uncertainty and Low Hiring, Raises Questions About More Rate Cuts

• Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin said Wednesday, February 25, 2026, that the back-and-forth on President Trump's tariffs adds to uncertainty for businesses and the economy.
• "Businesses still feel that heightened uncertainty, and that has something to do with why you see such a low hiring rate and why people aren't leaning into investments the way that they might," said Barkin. "Hard to know where that's going from here, but I'm not seeing a big pickup on the job growth side."
• Aside from tariffs, Barkin is "cautiously optimistic" that inflation will continue to come down this year. Meanwhile, on the job front, he noted that he has been reassured by the past few jobs reports. "I've been reassured by the labour market, also by the demand side, which has stayed relatively healthy, and I think that's the question is whether you need to put more in there on the rate side to help bolster demand," he said.
• The question is whether the Fed needs to cut rates further to boost the demand side amid low hiring. The Fed cut interest rates three times at the end of last year to bolster the job market.

(Source: Yahoo Finance)