Jerome Powell meets with President Trump for the first time in his second term amid tariff tensions and renewed calls for interest rate cuts.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell met with US President Donald Trump for the first time in the president’s second term amid Trump’s tariffs and cries for rate cuts.
Over the past few weeks, Trump has issued a scathing critique of Powell while simultaneously advocating for the Federal Reserve Chair to reduce interest rates.
Donald Trump Meet With Jerome Powell
According to a Federal Reserve statement, the Fed Chair conferred with Trump at the White House today at the president’s invitation.
The duo deliberated on economic developments like inflation, employment, and growth.
The statement observed that Jerome Powell did not elaborate on his expectations for monetary policy, except that the course of policy will be wholly determined by the incoming economic information and its implications for the outlook.
The Fed Chair also stated that he and his colleagues on the FOMC will establish monetary policy to promote stable prices and optimum employment, as mandated by law.
Additionally, they plan to make these decisions solely based on “careful, objective, and non-political” analysis.
The Fed meeting minutes, which were released just one day before this meeting, indicated that Powell and the FOMC are adopting a cautious stance in response to the uncertainty resulting from the Trump tariffs.
The Federal Reserve is careful due to its concern that tariffs may increase inflation.
Austan Goolsbee, President of the Chicago Federal Reserve, has expressed his belief that Fed rate reduction may be implemented if the Trump tariffs are resolved through a trade agreement or other means, as reported by CoinGape.
During a White House briefing, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt verified that Trump had met with the Federal Reserve Chair.
She claimed that the president advised Powell that it would be an error not to reduce interest rates.
Powell has been the subject of intense criticism from the president for an extended period, and he has repeatedly urged him to lower interest rates.
He contends that inflation is declining and that Powell is not justified in maintaining rates at their current level, as it is “too late.”
