U.S. President Donald Trump said he would love for Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to resign but acknowledged that many have said it would disrupt the markets if the president were to remove him. Trump made the comments in an interview with the Real America's Voice network aired on Wednesday.
The comments sparked market turmoil in both bond and strock markets but Wall Street ended higher on Wednesday, 16 July, with the Nasdaq Composite hitting a fresh record, despite a brief period of volatility earlier in the day.
However, calm was restored after it was clarified that the president had no plans to remove Powell from his position.
The S&P 500 index rose by 19.65 points (0.31%) to close at 6,263.41, the Nasdaq Composite gained 51.82 points (0.25%) to finish at 20,729.62, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 220.61 points (0.50%) to end at 44,243.90.
Financial analysts noted that Goldman Sachs delivered a strong quarterly report, which helped maintain optimism in the market, despite some slight weakness in investment banking. Overall, the market appears to be undergoing a phase of profit-taking at this stage.
Trump has criticized Powell on an almost daily basis in recent days for being "too late" to cut interest rates.
The White House and some Republicans have recently expressed criticism of cost overruns in a $2.5 billion renovation of the Fed's historic headquarters in Washington.
The criticism has confirmed the view that the Trump administration is actively exploring those costs as a possible avenue to try to fire the Fed chief well before his term as chair ends in May 2026.
There has been no evidence of fraud, and the Fed has pushed back on criticism of its handling of the project.
A Fed spokesperson had earlier pointed to Powell's repeated statements that he has no intention of resigning and would not if asked to do so.
Powell, who was nominated by Trump in late 2017 to lead the Fed and then nominated for a second term by then-President Joe Biden four years later, has said he intends to serve out his term as Fed chief, which ends on May 15.
Trump said earlier on Wednesday he is not planning to fire Powell.
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The visit also took on symbolic importance as the two leaders travelled to the liberated cities of Shusha and Fuzuli, areas Azerbaijan regained after decades of occupation.
Iran's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva said talks between the United States and Iran had made "good progress", with both sides set to establish working groups in the coming days to discuss sanctions relief and issues related to Iran's nuclear programme.
South Korea has announced it will accept North Korean prisoners of war captured by Ukrainian forces while fighting for Russia if they wish to relocate to the South, citing international law and opposition to forced repatriation.
A Ukrainian strike has damaged a school building in a Russian-controlled area of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, according to local authorities cited by the TASS news agency. No injuries were reported in the incident.
At least thirteen people have died and sixty-six have been injured following an explosion at Qatar's main liquefied natural gas (LNG) processing hub at Ras Laffan, authorities said on Sunday.
Cape Verde’s remarkable FIFA World Cup debut continued on Sunday (21 June) as the tournament newcomers held Uruguay to a 2-2 draw. Goalkeeper Vozinha was once again at the centre of the story, this time with his mother watching from the stands.
Tehran has agreed to let the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recommence inspections of its nuclear programme, U.S. Vice President JD Vance has said. The U.S. and Iran have settled on a 60-day roadmap aimed at reaching a final deal, according to mediators Qatar and Pakistan.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have agreed on a landmark internet deal that will allow traffic to pass through Azerbaijani networks.It's the latest deal to highlight the ongoing peace process between the two countries.
Three students have been killed and at least seven injured after two of their peers opened fire in a high school in the Philippines, police said. A spokesperson for the police said the two suspects, aged 14 and 15, had been arrested and a police pistol confiscated. Bullying is a possible motive.
South Korea has announced it will accept North Korean prisoners of war captured by Ukrainian forces while fighting for Russia if they wish to relocate to the South, citing international law and opposition to forced repatriation.
A Ukrainian strike has damaged a school building in a Russian-controlled area of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region, according to local authorities cited by the TASS news agency. No injuries were reported in the incident.
Authorities in France are reporting that about 20 people have died over the weekend while swimming in unsupervised areas of rivers, lakes and coastal waters as they tried to escape the heatwave.
A shooting in Montreal, Canada has left three people dead, including a police officer, a civilian and the suspected attacker, police said.
Attendees at undeclared free parties in France could face on-the-spot fines of €1,500 ($1,713) or up to six months in prison under proposed new legislation currently being reviewed by the French National Assembly.
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