Central banks throw weight behind Fed after Trump assault Economics Some of the world’s most prominent central banks have issued a full-throated support of the Federal Reserve and its chair Jay Powell, after Donald Trump’s campaign against its independence escalated with a Department of Justice legal action. In an unusual joint intervention, 11 central banking chiefs declared they stood in “full solidarity” with the Fed’s [...]
FTSE 100 Live: UBS to get new boss; Premier Inn leaseback deal Markets Good morning from the City AM liveblog team. What’s an easy way to tell apart a developed country from a less developed one? One straightforward yardstick is the behaviour of state institutions and their relationship to government. If they are well run, they are operated by professionals independently from the executive. Or – the executive [...]
Trump’s reckless assault on central bank independence Economics Donald Trump once said he values loyalty “above everything else…more than brains, more than drive and more than energy.” If you’re wondering how he responds to perceived disloyalty, he’s also previously said “I love getting even with people.” With these two statements in mind, the Trump administration’s dramatic escalation of its war against the Chairman [...]
Former Federal Reserve chiefs round on Trump’s ‘vindictive’ Powell salvo January 12, 2026 Donald Trump’s unprecedented decision to open a criminal indictment against Federal Reserve chair Jay Powell has been rounded on by all of his living predecessor, who accused the President of running the United States like a developing economy. In a highly unusual joint intervention, Janet Yellen, Ben Bernanke and Alan Greenspan rebuked the President’s most [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Barclays slumps on credit card cap, Fed’s Jerome Powell faces probe January 12, 2026 Good morning from the City AM liveblog team. The FTSE 100 broke through the five-figure mark last week in a welcome start to the year for the London markets. The index saw its best annual performance in 2025 since the recovery from the financial crash in 2009. That was helped along in no small part [...]
US government shutdown to delay crucial economic data October 2, 2025 The United States government shutdown has caused federal statistics agencies to stop producing economic reports, sparking fears Federal Reserve officials will be deprived of crucial data in the run-up to one of the most eagerly anticipated interest rate decisions in recent history. Funding for America’s federal services and government departments was halted on Wednesday, causing [...]
Andrew Bailey slams Trump’s ‘dangerous’ threats against US Federal Reserve September 3, 2025 Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey has said he is “very concerned” about President Trump’s threats against the US Federal Reserve. In a hearing before the Treasury Select Committee, Bailey said the threat to the Fed’s independence was a “very serious situation”. The Governor said he was worried about attempts to “trade off” monetary and [...]
Pound edges up against dollar after Trump’s latest Fed attack August 26, 2025 The pound gained from a turbulent US dollar trading session on Tuesday after the greenback was stung by President Donald Trump’s attacks on the Federal Reserve. The dollar index (DXY) – which tracks the dollar’s value against a basket of currencies – tumbled as much as 0.4 per cent as Trump said he had “sufficient [...]
Trump says he will fire Federal Reserve governor August 26, 2025 President Donald Trump has said that he is firing Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook. The unprecedented move would constitute a sharp escalation in his battle to exert greater control over what has long been considered a financial institution independent from day-to-day politics. Mr Trump said in a letter posted on his Truth Social platform that [...]
Dovish Powell hints at more rate cuts in US August 22, 2025 The Federal Reserve is likely to cut US interest rates at its next decision in September, Jay Powell has said, despite the country’s softening labour market being in conflict with upward pressure in prices from Donald Trump’s tariffs. In an eagerly anticipated address at the Jackson Hole symposium, the Fed chair highlighted slower economic growth, [...]