Ken Griffin Reportedly Warns Trump’s Tariff Impact Only Halfway Through, Says Inflation Could Stay Near 3%

Billionaire investor Ken Griffin reportedly warned on Thursday that U.S. consumers have yet to feel the full impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs and predicted only one more rate cut this year.

“The inflationary impulse from tariffs has only passed about 50% through the economy at this point. It’s still coming,” the Citadel founder told CNBC. He added that a 3% inflation rate “could be grating to tens of millions of American households.”

Griffin said that higher import costs from the tariffs are still feeding through supply chains, keeping inflation stuck above the Fed’s 2% target. He sees only one additional quarter-point rate cut, despite slowing job growth this year, and expects inflation to remain in the mid-2% to 3% range in 2026. “The consumer’s going to pay,” he said.

Griffin also urged the White House to preserve the Fed’s independence. “If I were the president, I would let the Fed do their job, and I would let the Fed have as much perceived and real independence as possible, because the Fed often has to make choices that are pretty painful to make,” he said. “If the president’s perceived as being [in] control of the Fed, then what happens when those painful choices have to be made?”

In the interview, Griffin singled out Apple (AAPL) as an example of how tariff exemptions can distort competition, arguing the iPhone maker should not be spared duties on devices manufactured overseas. 

While Apple has diversified production into India and Vietnam, he criticized what he sees as backroom deals with large corporations. “We’re just going to continue to favor big and connected businesses in America?” he asked. “When the state becomes involved in picking winners and losers, there’s only one way this game ends. All of us lose.”

He described the lobbying by companies seeking tariff exemptions as “nauseating,” calling it contrary to the American ideal of fair competition.

Apple’s stock edged 0.5% higher in afternoon trade on Thursday after reports surfaced that Intel may be approaching the Silicon Valley giant for a possible investment. Retail sentiment on Stockwits around the Cupertino-based company remained in ‘bullish’ territory amid ‘high’ levels of chatter. 

Meanwhile, the U.S. stock market remained in the red during afternoon trade.  The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) was down 0.44%, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) slipped 0.22%, and the Nasdaq-100 tracking Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) moved 0.40% lower. 

If losses hold, this would mark a third day of decline for the S&P 500. However, retail sentiment around SPY on Stocktwits remained in ‘bullish’ territory over the past day. Meanwhile, retail sentiment around QQQ improved to ‘neutral’ from the ‘bearish’ zone.

Read also: Former Fed Chairs, Treasury Secretaries Reportedly Urge Supreme Court To Block Trump From Firing Lisa Cook – Here’s The Full List Of Signatories

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.