Trump says not planning to fire US Fed chief Powell, after report prompts drop in stocks

South China Morning Post

3 days ago

US President Donald Trump said Wednesday he is not planning to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, after a Bloomberg report that the president is likely to do so soon sparked a drop in stocks and the dollar, and a rise in Treasury yields.
Such reports were not true, Trump said.
'I don't rule out anything, but I think it's highly unlikely unless he has to leave for fraud,' Trump said, a reference to recent White House and Republican lawmaker criticism of cost overruns in the US$2.5 billion renovation of the Fed's historic headquarters in Washington.
Stocks pared losses and Treasury yields pared declines after Trump's comments, which also included a now familiar barrage of criticism against the Fed chair for not cutting interest rates, calling him a 'terrible' chair.
Trump did talk to some Republican lawmakers about firing Powell, he said, but said he was more conservative about his approach to the question than they were.
The president said 'almost every one of them' supported the idea of removing the central bank chief, but denied that he drafted and displayed a letter authorising Powell's firing.
Two individuals familiar with the meeting said Trump did display such a document.