Trump Schedules Rare Fed Visit As Tensions With Powell Simmer

Even as President Donald Trump’s conflict with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell continues over the outlook for monetary policy, the president has scheduled a visit to the central bank's headquarters for Thursday. 

Media reports, citing a White House statement, said Trump would visit the Federal Reserve, located at the Eccles Building in Washington, D.C., at 4 p.m. ET on Thursday.  The meeting is scheduled to last an hour, although no further details regarding its purpose were divulged.

The meeting also assumes importance due to the recent controversy surrounding the alleged improprieties in the $2.5 billion renovation of the Federal Reserve headquarters.

Aside from the newly released schedule, Trump administration officials were already scheduled to visit the renovation site on Thursday. White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair confirmed the visit in an X post late Tuesday, stating that “They relented this morning. We go Thursday.”

Trump, meanwhile, has kept at his criticism of Jerome’s handling of monetary policy. In a post on his Truth Social account on Wednesday, the president blamed the central bank chief for the housing market's lagging performance. 

“‘Too Late’ Powell refuses to lower Interest Rates. Families are being hurt because Interest Rates are too high, and even our Country is having to pay a higher Rate than it should be because of ‘Too Late,'" the president said. 

Trump reiterated his view that the Fed funds rate, which serves as the reference rate for all other key rates, should be three percentage points lower than it is. The rate is currently at 4.25%-4.50%.

According to the president, this would save the U.S. $1 trillion per year in interest costs.

Calling Powell a “stubborn guy,” Trump said the Fed chair “just doesn’t get it — Never did, and never will. The Board should act, but they don’t have the Courage to do so!”

The standoff between Trump and the Fed chair has roiled the market in the past but stocks have resiliently fought their back.  The Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks the Nasdaq 100 Index, and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) have gained 10.6% and 8.9%, respectively, for the year.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the rate-setting committee, comprises seven members of the Federal Reserve Board, the President of the New York Fed, and four of the remaining 11 Federal Reserve presidents, who serve one-year terms on a rotating basis.

While the central bank has been fixated on a data-dependent stance, especially in the wake of tariff uncertainties, some members of the rate-setting committee have recently expressed dissent.

Fed Governor Christopher Waller called for urgent rate cuts in a speech delivered earlier this week.

The FOMC is scheduled to meet for its next rate-setting meeting next week, with a decision expected on Wednesday following the conclusion of a two-day meeting.

According to the CME FedWatch Tool, which measures the probability of rate decisions based on expectations from futures traders, there is an extremely low probability (3.1%) of a 25-basis-point cut at the July meeting. The odds increase to 64% for a September rate cut.

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