The likelihood of a Federal Reserve rate cut in September is now seen near 100% after new data showed U.S. inflation increased at a moderate pace in July and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he thought an aggressive half-point cut was possible given recent weak employment numbers.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he isn’t calling for a series of interest-rate cuts from the Federal Reserve, just pointing out that models suggest a “neutral” rate would be about 1.5 percentage points lower.

The current Federal Reserve interest rate is significantly higher than necessary and should be lowered, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday.