Fed Chairman Jerome Powell On Thursday, he said he would not step down if President-elect Trump asked him to resign.
When asked if he would resign if Trump asked him to, the Fed chairman simply said: “No.” Powell later told reporters that the president does not have the authority to fire or demote him.
“The law doesn’t allow it,” Powell told reporters at a briefing. press conferencefollowing the Federal Reserve Lower interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point.
Investors will be closely watching the contentious relationship between the president-elect and the chairman of the Federal Reserve. Trump appointed Powell in 2017 but repeatedly lashed out at the central banker during his first term as president for not easing monetary policy fast enough.
Trump said in an October interview that the president should be able to influence interest rate decisions.
Trump told Bloomberg News at the Economic Club of Chicago in October: “I don’t think I should be allowed to order, but I think I have the right to comment on whether interest rates should go up or down.” 15.
In March 2020, as Covid-19 swept the country, Trump claimed power Remove Powell from office. The Fed Chairman’s term ends in 2026.
Powell also said on Thursday that Trump’s election victory this week would not have any direct impact on the central bank’s policy.
“In the short term, the election will not have an impact on our policy decisions,” Powell told reporters.
Republicans also won a majority in the Senate in Tuesday’s election. If Republicans also take the House, Trump should have an easier path to passing his economic agenda.
Former Trump Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin says the president-elect may focus on Tax reductions and tariffsespecially regarding China.
Powell said the next administration’s policies could have economic consequences that could affect the Fed’s dual mission of full employment and price stability. But Powell said it was too early to draw conclusions and the Fed had not made any assumptions.
“It’s still early days,” Powell said. “We don’t know what these policies are, and once we know what they are, we don’t know when they will be implemented,” he said.
