The White House meeting came amid intensifying pressure from the president to ease monetary policy as inflation has fallen.
President Donald Trump told Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at a White House meeting on May 29 that the central bank chief erred in not lowering borrowing costs, while Powell said decisions on interest rates would remain grounded in economic data and free from political influence.
According to a brief readout from the Fed, Powell did not discuss his expectations for the timing or pace of future rate cuts but said that all policy moves would be based “entirely on incoming economic information and what that means for the outlook.”
“Chair Powell said that he and his colleagues on the FOMC [Federal Open Market Committee] will set monetary policy, as required by law, to support maximum employment and stable prices and will make those decisions based solely on careful, objective, and non-political analysis,” the Fed said.
The central bank’s benchmark interest rate currently stands at 4.25 to 4.5 percent.
The meeting, held at Trump’s request, came amid intensifying pressure from the president to ease monetary policy. Trump has said that rates are too high given that inflation has dropped significantly and that Powell should cut them further—a move the president believes would help boost economic competitiveness, particularly against rivals like China.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at a briefing after the meeting that Trump “believes the Fed chair is making a mistake by not lowering interest rates, which is putting us at an economic disadvantage to China and other countries.” She added that the president has been “very vocal” about that both in public statements and in private meetings.
Leavitt also confirmed that Trump did not discuss firing Powell or replacing him before his term expires in May 2026. Speculation has been swirling over who might succeed Powell, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently suggesting the White House would begin a search this fall. Bessent floated the idea of appointing a “shadow Fed chair” to help guide market expectations during the transition, although the Treasury chief has also said Powell should be allowed to serve out his term.
By Tom Ozimek
