Washington [US], July 18: Bloomberg reported on July 16 that US President Donald Trump may soon remove Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, causing the stock market and USD price to fall.
Trump later said the Bloomberg report was untrue, but confirmed that he had raised the idea of removing Powell with Republican lawmakers on July 15, according to Reuters. Trump also said he had no plans to remove Powell, but left the possibility open and continued to criticize the Fed chairman for not lowering interest rates.
Republican senators warned that it would be a big mistake if President Trump actually fired Mr. Powell, saying it could cause a "shock wave" in financial markets, according to The Hill yesterday. Senator Thom Tillis (R-Ky.) predicted that Mr. Trump would have a hard time getting the Fed to lower interest rates because the Fed operates largely by consensus and has 12 voting members.
Mr. Powell has repeatedly stated that he intends to serve out his term, which expires on May 15, 2026. A recent ruling by the US Supreme Court reinforced a long-standing interpretation of the law that the Fed chairman cannot be removed for policy differences but only for cause.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
