U.S. Federal Reserve Governor Kugler steps down, giving Trump slot to fill
Ms. Kugler, who did not participate in the Fed's policy meeting earlier this week, would have completed her term in January. Instead, she will retire August 8. She did not provide a reason for stepping down in her resignation letter.
Mr. Trump has continued his attacks on the Fed since chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that the central bank would keep its short-term interest rate unchanged. Mr. Powell also said the Fed could take months to evaluate the impact of tariffs on the economy before deciding to cut rates, as Mr. Trump has demanded.
Mr. Powell is 'a stubborn MORON, must substantially lower interest rates, NOW," Mr. Trump posted early Friday morning, before the monthly jobs report was released. That report showed hiring slowed in July and was much lower in May and June than had been initially reported.
Ms. Kugler was appointed to the Fed's seven-member board of governors by former President Joe Biden in September 2023. She was the first Hispanic Fed governor, and prior to joining the Fed, was a professor at Georgetown University and was the U.S. representative to the World Bank. She will return to the Georgetown faculty in the fall.
'I am proud to have tackled this role with integrity, a strong commitment to serving the public, and with a data-driven approach strongly based on my expertise in labour markets and inflation,' she said in her resignation letter.
In her last speech as a Fed governor two weeks ago, Ms. Kugler expressed support for Mr. Powell's view that the central bank should keep rates unchanged while officials monitor the economy to see how Mr. Trump's tariffs affect inflation and the economy.
Mr. Trump, meanwhile, has said he will appoint Fed officials who favour cutting rates.
One complication is that Mr. Powell's term as chair ends in May 2026. But his position on the Fed's governing board lasts through January 2028. As a result, he could stay on the board even after stepping down as chair, and simply remain as one of seven governors.
There is some precedent for such a step: Marriner Eccles, who served as Fed chair in the 1930s, remained on the board after completing his term as chair.
If Mr. Powell took such a step, that would mean whomever the Trump administration chose to replace Ms. Kugler could then be elevated to chair after Mr. Powell finishes as chair in May 2026. In other words, to get their choice of Fed Chair in 2026, the Trump White House may choose to appoint that person to replace Ms. Kugler as governor, and then elevate them to Fed chair in May 2026.
Mr. Powell has declined to answer at the last two press conferences whether he will leave the board when he is done as chair.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Economic Times
11 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Trump envoy Witkoff meets Putin ahead of Russia-Ukraine peace deadline
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow ahead of a deadline set by President Trump for a Ukraine peace deal, or Russia will face fresh U.S. sanctions. The three-hour meeting was described as 'constructive.' Despite diplomatic overtures, Trump warned of tariffs on nations importing Russian oil. Ukraine insists Russia must end the war. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with US President Donald Trump 's special envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow on Wednesday, days before the White House's deadline for Russia to reach a peace deal with Ukraine or potentially face severe economic penalties that could also hit countries buying its meeting between Putin and Witkoff lasted about three hours, the Kremlin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said that Putin and Witkoff had a "useful and constructive conversation" that focused on the Ukrainian crisis and, in a nod toward improving relations between Washington and Moscow, "prospects for possible development of strategic cooperation between the US and Russia."Trump said in a post on his Truth Social media network that Witkoff "had a highly productive meeting" with Putin in which "great progress was made."Trump said he updated America's allies in Europe about the meeting and that they will work toward an end to the Russia-Ukraine war "in the days and weeks to come."Earlier on Wednesday, a White House official said the US was still expected to impose secondary sanctions against Russia on Friday after a 10-day deadline Trump imposed is set to expire. The White House has not yet released details about the sanctions. The official was not authorised to speak publicly and spoke on condition of has threatened "severe tariffs" and other economic penalties if the killing doesn't has expressed increasing frustration with Putin over Russia's escalating strikes on civilian areas of Ukraine, intended to erode morale and public appetite for the war. The intensified attacks have occurred even as Trump has urged the Russian leader in recent months to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday evening that he and Trump spoke on the phone after Witkoff met with Putin in Moscow. He said "European leaders also participated in the conversation," and "we discussed what was said in Moscow.""Our common position with our partners is absolutely clear: The war must end," Zelenskyy said. "We all need lasting and reliable peace. Russia must end the war that it started." He didn't offer any details of the from Tuesday to Wednesday, Russian forces hit a recreational center in Ukraine's southern Zaporizhzhia region, killing two people and injuring 12, including two children, regional Gov. Ivan Fedorov said forces launched at least four strikes on the area and initially attacked with powerful glide bombs."There is zero military sense in this strike. Only cruelty to intimidate," Zelenskyy said in a post on also struck the Ukrainian power grid and facilities for heating and cooking gas, Zelenskyy said, as Ukraine makes preparations for analysts and Ukrainian officials say Putin is stalling for time and avoiding serious negotiations while Russian forces push to capture more Ukraine land.A Russian offensive that started in the spring and is expected to continue through the fall is advancing faster than last year's push but is making only slow and costly gains and has been unable to take any major situation on the front line is critical for Ukrainian forces but defences are not about to collapse, analysts Tuesday, Trump said "we'll see what happens" regarding his threat to slap tariffs on nations that buy Russian oil, which could increase import taxes dramatically on China and India."We have a meeting with Russia tomorrow," Trump said. "We're going to see what happens. We'll make that determination at that time."The president said that he has not publicly committed to a specific tariff up diplomatic and economic pressure on the Kremlin risks stoking international tensions amid worsening Russia-US has given no hint that he might be ready to make concessions. Instead, the Russian leader and senior Kremlin officials have talked up the country's military announced last week that Russia's new hypersonic missile, which he says cannot be intercepted by current NATO air defence systems, has entered announced Tuesday that it no longer regards itself as bound by a self-imposed moratorium on the deployment of nuclear-capable intermediate range missiles, a warning that potentially sets the stage for a new arms Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, meantime, warned that the Ukraine war could bring Russia and the US into armed conflict. Trump responded to that by ordering the repositioning of two US nuclear spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday welcomed Witkoff's visit. "We consider (talks with Witkoff) important, substantive and very useful," he initially gave Moscow a 50-day deadline, but later moved up his ultimatum as the Kremlin continued to bomb Ukrainian Trump himself doubted their effectiveness, saying Sunday that Russia has proven to be "pretty good at avoiding sanctions.""They're wily characters," he said of the Kremlin has insisted that international sanctions imposed since its February 2022 invasion of its neighbour have had a limited maintains the sanctions are taking their toll on Moscow's war machine and wants Western allies to ramp them up.
India.com
11 minutes ago
- India.com
DNA Analysis
From consumer goods to the pharmaceutical sector, every assessment indicates that Trump's excessive tariffs on India will ultimately harm the United States. However, Trump remains firm on increasing tariffs. The reason is clear: for Trump, these tariffs are not just an economic issue but a weapon for blackmailing. The first target of this strategy is Russian oil, and the second is the BRICS alliance standing against America. One member of BRICS today gave Trump a tough message—Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. In today's DNA, we analysed the strong defiance shown by BRICS members, particularly Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who openly rejected any negotiations with Trump and characterized his approach as mere intimidation rather than dialogue. #DNAWithRahulSinha #DNA #DonaldTrump… — Zee News (@ZeeNews) August 6, 2025 In a speech, Brazil's president said, 'I will talk to Xi Jinping, I will send an invitation to India's Prime Minister Modi, and if Putin were able to travel, I would invite him too. But I will not talk to Trump because he does not want to talk—he only wants to threaten.' Why did Brazil's president use such strong words against Trump? The reason lies in the harsh tariffs Trump has imposed on BRICS members. Russian oil is merely an excuse; Trump's real goal is to weaken the BRICS group to maintain Western dominance in the world. To understand why Trump harbors such animosity towards the BRICS coalition, one must look closely at the key decisions made at the last BRICS summit. At the summit held in Brazil, the first decision was that BRICS members will conduct trade in their own currencies in the future, which directly threatens the influence of the US dollar over a large part of the world. The members also agreed to establish a BRICS Bank similar to the World Bank. If such a financial institution comes into existence, it will reduce the importance of Western-backed institutions like the World Bank. Additionally, BRICS members decided to increase strategic cooperation to combat terrorism and terror-supporting countries. Should this happen, a significant part of Asia and Africa could pose an organized strategic challenge to the United States and its Western allies. For these reasons, Trump is determined to force BRICS members to bend and create divisions within the alliance. While tariff threats have made 34 countries yield, Trump has been unable to make BRICS's key members—India, China, Russia, and Brazil—budge at all.
India.com
11 minutes ago
- India.com
Trump's 50% tariffs on India! which sectors will impact? study says ‘estimated impact of…'
U.S. President Donald Trump has announced a 50% tariff on Indian goods, which will take effect from August 7. This move raised major concerns about its potential impact on the Indian economy. However, there's some good news a new report suggests the impact will be minimal. According to a study by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI), the tariff is expected to affect India's GDP by only 0.19%, which is almost negligible. Out of India's total exports worth $86.5 billion, only $8.1 billion around 1.87% will be affected by this move. Trump Tariffs: What PHDCCI Study Says? The paper, released by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI), also recommends a series of measures to mitigate the impact of US tariffs. 'Our analysis indicates that there will be an estimated impact of only 1.87 per cent on India's total global merchandise exports and a negligible 0.19 per cent on India's GDP as a result of a 25 per cent tariff announced by the US on India,' said Hemant Jain, President, PHDCCI. The study said the total potential export impact is estimated at USD 8.1 billion based on 2024-25 merchandise exports of USD 86.5 billion (1.87 per cent of India's total global export). Which Sectors Will Impact By Trump Tariffs? Among other sectors, the study said the levies would impact engineering goods (USD 1.8 billion), gems and jewellery (USD 932 million), and ready-made garments (USD 500 million). In the wake of the US tariffs, the industry body has recommended several measures, including increasing market penetration, product development and market diversification. It suggested that stakeholders should negotiate bundled-pricing deals (textiles plus accessories) to absorb some tariff cost and maintain shelf-price competitiveness. 'Leverage Indian diaspora networks (trade fairs, cultural events) to boost volume with existing buyers under current product portfolios,' it said. PHDCCI also made a strong case for investments in joint ventures with US firms to produce tariff-sensitive goods on-shore, thereby converting exports into high-value services and intellectual property (IP) licensing. (With Inputs From PTI)
