Dow hits record high as Trump tries to soothe Americans’ economic frustration

The Dow Jones Industrial Average reached an all-time intraday record on Thursday, sparking a victory lap from President Trump, who is tired of getting low marks on the economy.

The index surpassed 48,500 points in the wake of the Federal Reserve’s midweek decision to slash interest rates and a healthy rise in Visa shares after the Bank of America upgraded the stock based on the company’s “strong fundamentals.”

“STOCK MARKET JUST HIT AN ALL-TIME HIGH!!! When will the Fake Polls show that I am doing a great job on the Economy, and much more???” Mr. Trump wrote on social media.

Mr. Trump is focusing on the economy as Democrats attack him for falling short of his campaign promise to lower prices. Inflation remains close to 3%, above the Fed’s target of 2% but well below the 9% inflation under Mr. Biden. Still, concerns remain about elevated grocery prices and rampant layoffs.

Mr. Trump and his team insist they inherited an economic mess from Mr. Biden, and it will take time for them to fix it.

They’ve pointed to tax cuts and increased economic productivity from the booming artificial intelligence sector.

“AI is going to grow in America. We have the right rules, we have the right foundation,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Thursday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”

Mr. Trump also says tariffs will balance the U.S. budget and force foreign companies to build factories in America that will create U.S. jobs.

Manufacturing hiring has been sluggish, however, and firms are concerned about the cost burden from tariffs, which must be paid by U.S. entities that import foreign products.

Democrats have seized on the “affordability” issue and pinned the blame on Mr. Trump for Americans’ economic frustrations.

“There aren’t enough speeches in the world to paper over the fact that Donald Trump has sent costs up and up, not down,” Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, said. “His tariffs have raised the price of groceries, raised the price of clothing, and raised the price of energy.”

The Fed is concerned about lingering inflation, but sluggish hiring is a bigger worry. That’s why it opted on Wednesday to slash borrowing rates for a third straight time.

The Trump team wanted the central bank to act more quickly and boldly than it did.

“I think rates in the United States of America should be much lower,” Mr. Lutnick said.

Mr. Lutnick said Fed Chair Jerome Powell “is too late, but maybe he should be called too afraid.”