President Donald Trump met Thursday with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell amid the president badgering the central bank for lower interest rates.
The central bank confirmed in a release that the meeting occurred, stressing that the future path of monetary policy was not discussed.
“At the President’s invitation, Chair Powell met with the President today at the White House to discuss economic developments including for growth, employment, and inflation,” the Fed statement said. “Chair Powell did not discuss his expectations for monetary policy, except to stress that the path of policy will depend entirely on incoming economic information and what that means for the outlook.”
Moreover, the release indicated that Powell and his Fed colleagues remain committed to setting monetary policy on “careful, objective, and non-political analysis.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a CNBC request for comment.
The meeting comes at a sensitive time for the U.S. economy, with Trump pushing potentially inflationary tariffs and the Fed trying to balance its mandate to provide full employment and stable prices.
Using his Truth Social media outlet, Trump repeatedly has called for the Powell-led Federal Open Market Committee to lower interest rates. The FOMC hasn’t eased since December, just before Trump took office for his second nonconsecutive term.
“‘THE CONSENSUS OF ALMOST EVERYBODY IS THAT, “THE FED SHOULD CUT RATES SOONER, RATHER THAN LATER.” Too Late Powell, a man legendary for being Too Late, will probably blow it again – But who knows???'” Trump posted on May 17.
This was the first meeting since Trump began his second term. At a news conference earlier this month, Powell confirmed that the two had not met yet, and said he wouldn’t be making the first move for a presidential sitdown.
“I’ve never asked for a meeting with any president, and I never will,” Powell said. “I wouldn’t do that. There’s never a reason for me to ask for a meeting. It’s always been the other way.”
With tariff uncertainty lingering, markets largely expect the Fed to stay put on rates until there’s more clarity. Futures market pricing indicates the central bank won’t resume cutting until at least September, bypassing meetings in June and July, with a likelihood of another reduction before the end of the year. The FOMC lowered rates by a full percentage point in the latter part of 2024.
