U.S. President Donald Trump claimed that his administration’s decision to purchase $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities has already driven down borrowing costs, saying the average 30-year mortgage rate has fallen below 6% for the first time in years. He also said the decline was achieved without support from the Federal Reserve, sharply criticising Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whom he accused of obstructing rate cuts. The remarks come amid an escalating confrontation between the White House and the Federal Reserve. Earlier, Jerome Powell revealed that the Trump administration had threatened him with criminal indictment and issued grand jury subpoenas related to his congressional testimony on a Fed building renovation project.