The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday edition that the Federal Reserve will likely reduce borrowing costs as soon as September. An Associated Press dispatch to The Globe reports that a rate cut this fall would be a big change and could provide a boost to the economy. Lowering Fed rates typically reduces borrowing costs for mortgages, auto loans and credit cards over time. An individual decrease in the Federal Reserve's key interest rate, currently at about 5.3 per cent, would not have a significant impact on the economy by itself, as it is widely anticipated by financial markets. Some borrowing costs have already decreased in anticipation of this action. The question now is how quickly and extensively will the policy-makers ultimately reduce interest rates? Any signal that the Fed will rapidly cut rates could boost the economy and potentially lift Vice-President Kamala Harris's election prospects. Former president Donald Trump has argued that the Fed should not cut rates until its next meeting, in November, which will come two days after the election. AP reports that futures markets have priced in a 64-per-cent likelihood that the Fed will cut rates three times this year, in September, November and December.