Latest news with #FederalOpenMarketCommittee
NBC News
13 hours ago
- Business
- NBC News
Trump rips Jerome Powell after Fed holds interest rates steady
President Donald Trump ripped into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday, calling him 'destructive,' after the central bank kept interest rates steady on Wednesday. Trump said 'Too Late' Powell is costing the United States 'hundreds of billions of dollars' by not cutting rates, leveling a familiar criticism against the Fed chair who has repeatedly ignored Trump's pressure campaign to cut rates. 'We should be 2.5 Points lower, and save $BILLIONS on all of Biden's Short Term Debt,' Trump wrote Thursday on Truth Social. Trump also criticized Powell late Wednesday, calling him a 'real dummy' in a near-midnight Truth Social post. Powell, whose term ends in May of 2026, said Wednesday that, 'for the time being, we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the likely course of the economy before considering any adjustments to our policies.' Trump's remarks were in response to the Federal Open Market Committee keeping its borrowing rate targeted in a range between 4.25%-4.5%, which is on par with where it's been since December. The criticisms were not surprising, as the president has long slammed Powell for not lowering interest rates. As recently as Wednesday morning, hours before the Fed was set to release its decision on interest rates, Trump said: 'So we have a stupid person. Frankly, you probably won't cut today.' 'Europe had 10 cuts, and we had none. And I guess he's a political guy, I don't know. He's a political guy who's not a smart person, but he's costing the country a fortune,' he said outside the White House. Trump even mused about appointing himself to lead the Federal Reserve, saying, 'I'd do a much better job than these people.' Trump has said that he intends to announce his pick for the next chair of the Federal Reserve ' very soon.'
CNBC
13 hours ago
- Business
- CNBC
Trump rips into 'too late' Jerome Powell after Fed holds rates steady
President Donald Trump ripped into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday, calling him "destructive," after the central bank kept interest rates steady on Wednesday. Trump said "Too Late" Powell is costing the United States "hundreds of billions of dollars" by not cutting rates, leveling a familiar criticism against the Fed chair who has repeatedly ignored Trump's pressure campaign to cut rates. "We should be 2.5 Points lower, and save $BILLIONS on all of Biden's Short Term Debt," Trump wrote Thursday on Truth Social. Trump also criticized Powell late Wednesday, calling him a "real dummy" in a near-midnight Truth Social post. Powell, whose term ends in May of 2026, said Wednesday that, "for the time being, we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the likely course of the economy before considering any adjustments to our policies." Trump's remarks were in response to the Federal Open Market Committee keeping its borrowing rate targeted in a range between 4.25%-4.5%, which is on par with where it's been since December. The criticisms were not surprising, as the president has long slammed Powell for not lowering interest rates. As recently as Wednesday morning, hours before the Fed was set to release its decision on interest rates, Trump said: "So we have a stupid person. Frankly, you probably won't cut today." "Europe had 10 cuts, and we had none. And I guess he's a political guy, I don't know. He's a political guy who's not a smart person, but he's costing the country a fortune," he said outside the White House. Trump even mused about appointing himself to lead the Federal Reserve, saying, "I'd do a much better job than these people." Trump has said that he intends to announce his pick for the next chair of the Federal Reserve "very soon."
Business Times
17 hours ago
- Business
- Business Times
The Fed is just as confused as the rest of us
THE most powerful institution in global finance is as completely and utterly confused as the rest of us. At its policy decision on Wednesday (Jun 18), the US Federal Reserve's rate-setting committee held rates at 4.25 to 4.5 per cent, but Chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues essentially acknowledged that they had no idea what would come next. They couldn't precisely project where US President Donald Trump's tariff rates would end up, much less how they would impact consumer inflation and the labour market. Nor could they confidently handicap jarring changes to immigration and fiscal policies and the evolving war between Israel and Iran. The big risk, of course, is that the uncertainty and indecision will make the Fed late to arrest a potential increase in unemployment. In the Summary of Economic Projections, the median member of the Federal Open Market Committee pencilled in two rate cuts this year. But that 'base case' constitutes a massive oversimplification of the outlook, and some investors may be underestimating just how fat the tails are in the distribution of potential outcomes, even over just the next three or four months. Of the 19 respondents, 14 policymakers thought the risks to their inflation forecasts were weighted to the upside — the same number that thought as much about the risks to their unemployment projections. In a nutshell, they don't pretend to know what's coming, but Powell thinks we may find out relatively soon. At his post-decision press conference, Powell said: 'We feel like we're going to learn a great deal more over the summer on tariffs. We hadn't expected them to show up much by now, and they haven't. And we will see the extent to which they do over coming months. And I think that's going to inform our thinking for one thing. In addition, we'll see how the labour market progresses.' BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Given all the uncertainty, Powell is right to stay in wait-and-see mode, but he can't linger there too long once the data breaks. Meanwhile, those of us on the sidelines should prepare for the policy outlook to shift quite quickly, potentially as soon as the Fed's Sep 16-17 meeting. Maybe we really will get two rate cuts this year, but it's also perfectly plausible that we'll get 150 basis points worth – or none. It's a great environment for high-stakes gamblers – but not so much for American households. As Powell alluded to, it's largely trade policy that has put us all in this bind. In recent months, the disinflationary trends in housing and non-housing services have the core personal consumption expenditures deflator – the Fed's preferred inflation gauge – up around 2.6 per cent in May from a year earlier. That's not at all terrible, and it would probably be poised to converge on the Fed's 2 per cent target if not for Trump's extremely ill-timed and pointless trade wars. Without tariffs, the Fed would probably be cutting right now, providing ballast to a wobbly labour market and a housing market that's already seeing year-over-year price drops in some parts of the country. Unfortunately, the central bank has to play the hand it's dealt. In the immediate term, we still don't know if companies will pass on higher prices to consumers, accept narrower margins or manage their way to stable prices by laying off parts of their workforce – and maybe it will be a combination of all three. The risks to both the Fed's stable prices and maximum employment mandates are substantial, and that's causing paralysis among policymakers – a weird 'calm before the storm' effect both at the Fed and in financial markets. But at some point before autumn, we are very likely to see something shatter that calm. An alarming jump in initial jobless claims could lead to rate cuts above and beyond any policymaker's base case. A jarring CPI report or two could keep the Fed on hold for longer and prompt a selloff in bonds. And a jump in realised inflation coupled with signs of unanchored inflation expectations could even put hikes back on the table. If they're late to mitigate the damage, Fed policymakers can take cover in blaming Trump's self-sabotaging trade policy. But they must prepare to act immediately and convincingly once the signals break in a particular direction. BLOOMBERG
The Print
a day ago
- Business
- The Print
Rupee falls 9 paise to close at 86.43 against US dollar
Moreover, elevated global crude oil prices and selling pressure from foreign investors also weighed on the local unit, they said, adding that the domestic markets are falling on risk aversion in the global markets amid the ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Forex traders said the rupee dwindled amid weak domestic equity markets and the broad strength of the dollar. Mumbai, Jun 18 (PTI) The rupee depreciated 9 paise to close at 86.43 against the US dollar on Wednesday, dragged down by risk-off sentiments and elevated crude oil prices. At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit witnessed heavy volatility. It opened at 86.42 against the greenback and touched an intra-day high of 86.25 and a low of 86.57 against the greenback during the day. At the end of Wednesday's trading session, the local unit was at 86.43, down 9 paise over its previous closing price. On Tuesday, the rupee declined 30 paise to close at 86.34 against the greenback. 'We expect the rupee to trade with a negative bias on risk aversion in the global markets and worries over rising crude oil prices. Escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East may weigh on the rupee. 'However, any de-escalation of tensions may see a recovery in the global risk assets. Traders may take cues from weekly unemployment claims data from the US. Traders may also await the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting outcome. The US Federal Reserve is expected to keep interest rates unchanged. USDINR spot price is expected to trade in a range of 86.15 to 86.90,' said Anuj Choudhary – Research Analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan. According to Dilip Parmar, Senior Research Analyst, HDFC Securities, the rupee depreciated for the second consecutive day, primarily due to prevailing risk-averse market sentiment and anticipated dollar outflows, which are fuelled by ongoing geopolitical uncertainties. 'The negative carry return is also contributing to the rupee's downward pressure,' he said and added that the spot USD-INR pair is expected to find support around 85.90, while encountering resistance at the 86.70 level. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading lower by 0.17 per cent at 98.65. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.86 per cent to USD 75.79 per barrel in futures trade. In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 138.64 points, or 0.17 per cent, to close at 81,444.66, while the Nifty fell 41.35 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 24,812.05. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) purchased equities worth Rs 890.93 crore on a net basis on Wednesday, according to exchange data. PTI DRR HVA This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
Axios
a day ago
- Business
- Axios
Scoop: MAGA's new attack on the Fed
Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) is providing some supporting Senate fire in President Trump's unrelenting assault on Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Why it matters: Senate Republicans have largely defended Powell in the face of Trump's attacks and guarded the Fed's independence. But Moreno is sending a clear signal that tariffs and interest rates will be part of the conversation for whoever succeeds Powell at the Fed. For months, Trump has been badgering Powell to cut interest rates faster, and Wednesday he called him "stupid." Trump appointed Powell in his first term. Driving the news: The Fed on Wednesday left interest rates unchanged for the fourth straight meeting, with Powell citing concerns Trump's tariffs could lead to higher inflation this summer. That set Moreno off. "I write to express serious concern with the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) decision-making process that led to today's announcement that interest rates would remain unchanged," Moreno wrote to Powell on Wednesday, in a letter obtained by Axios. "The Fed appears to be giving credence to economists' latest anti-tariff argument," he wrote. "After raising inflation expectations with fearmongering, the Fed uses this as justification for not cutting rates." "This circular logic is intellectually dishonest." Zoom out: Unlike any president before him, Trump has gone to remarkable lengths to publicly humiliate the Fed chair, as he tries to convince him to lower interest rates, which Trump wants to boost the economy and lower interest payments on the debt. But after initially scaring the markets about a potential midnight firing, Trump's tantrums over the Fed appear to be more for show than substance. In April, Trump said he had "no intention" of firing Powell, a pledge he repeated last week. Zoom in: Senate Republicans, for the most part, have ridden to Powell's defense, with Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) saying in April that Powell has "tiger blood." "He's going to do what he thinks is right," Kennedy said. Last year, Sen. Bill Haggerty (R-Tenn.) told Powell in a hearing that "the credibility of the [Federal Reserve] depends on you remaining data driven." "The credibility of our currency as the reserve currency of the world depends on that," he said. The bottom line: Powell's term ends in May of 2026 and Trump said last week he plans to name his successor " very soon."
