CNN's global economic analyst Rana Foroohar reacted to the early jobs data suggesting the U.S. economy was weakening, and she was bemused by the excuses offered by President Donald Trump ahead of the report.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics report Friday morning shows just 22,000 jobs were added last month, far below the 76,500 that economists projected, and the manufacturing sector shed 12,000 jobs, and Foroohar told "CNN News Central" that investors were likely spooked that Trump fired the agency's former head after a weaker-than-expected report in August.
"You've got to have clean data, you've got to let investors, both at home and abroad, know that they can trust the data that the U.S. is not some kind of, you know, third-world country where central bankers just get fired or BLS data collectors get fired because the president doesn't like it," Foroohar said. "You know, we know what happens in those countries, they have major financial crises. Turkey's a perfect example, so I am really hoping, frankly, that if we do get a [Federal Reserve] rate cut for good reasons, based on what we've just seen, that maybe that will take a little bit of the pressure off of of [Fed governor] Lisa Cook and put Trump back in his box for a while."
Trump suggested the night before the jobs report that he's not sure he'd trust the numbers, and he promised a much better economy and what he termed "palaces of genius" a year from now, and Foroohar said that uncertainty would likely keep investors from trusting the administration's economic data.
"They wouldn't," she said, "and that's why, in fact, every single time since 2016, when Trump was first elected, every single time the U.S. has done a treasury auction, there's been fewer and fewer foreign buyers. Overseas folks don't want our treasuries anymore, that's why they're going into gold. That's why gold prices are now at a new record and probably going to go higher."
"Crypto companies are buying treasuries – don't know if that makes anybody feel good, doesn't make me feel great," she added, chuckling mordantly. "But, yeah, these are these are serious issues."
Host Kate Bolduan laughed at Foroorhar's sardonic assessment.
"I was like, I'm trying to look at your face," Bolduan said, laughing. "I was like, so what's Rana saying about this one? Good, bad or bad?"