The Federal Reserve, America’s powerful central bank, has long been insulated from direct political interference — at least in theory. But the question of how much a president can influence the Fed’s leadership has bubbled up repeatedly in recent years, particularly during President Donald Trump’s first term when he publicly lambasted Fed Chair Jerome Powell for raising interest rates.
President Donald Trump renewed his criticism of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Monday, slamming the central bank for refusing to cut interest rates despite falling inflation. Trump accused Powell and the entire Federal Reserve Board of costing the U.S. economy “trillions” in unnecessary interest costs.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell confirmed Tuesday that the central bank is officially removing “reputational risk” as a factor in banking supervision—an overdue victory for conservatives fighting against ideological discrimination in the financial system. Powell declared that “debanking” has become a “serious problem,” especially for industries and individuals targeted for their political or commercial associations.
The election of Donald Trump to a second presidential term is fueling a wave of economic optimism, with business confidence reaching its highest level in 18 months. S&P Global’s latest data reveals accelerated growth across the services sector, underscoring the positive impact of Trump’s anticipated pro-business policies.
American credit card defaults have surged to the highest levels since the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, as consumers continue to grapple with years of high inflation. In the first three quarters of 2024, credit card lenders wrote off $46 billion in delinquent loan balances, marking a 50 percent increase from the same period last year. These write-offs, considered a highly monitored measure of loan distress, are the highest since 2010, according to industry data gathered by BankRegData.
Apple is approaching a historic $4 trillion stock market valuation, driven by renewed investor confidence in its artificial intelligence advancements and expectations of a new wave of iPhone upgrades.
U.S. stocks fell sharply on Wednesday, erasing earlier gains after the Federal Reserve announced a 25 basis point rate cut and projected a slower pace of rate reductions for next year.
The Federal Reserve made its third consecutive interest rate cut on Wednesday, reducing its benchmark rate by a quarter of a percentage point. The move, widely anticipated by investors and financial markets, brings the federal funds rate to a target range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent. Since beginning its rate cuts in September, the Fed has now lowered rates by a total of 100 basis points, or one percentage point.
