The President Donald Trump He visited the Federal Reserve to make a tour of the renewal project of the headquarters of the institution, which has questioned the cost overruns of the work. Both Trump’s presence in the Fed and his motives is not something that is usual in the United States. The last public visit of a president to the Central Bank occurred when George W. Bush attended the swearing ceremony of Ben Bernanke, who presided over the monetary authority during the financial crisis of 2008.
And as expected, US president starred in a rare public confrontation with Jerome Powell. In front of cameras, Trump increased Powell for the project overrun valued at US $ 2,500 million.
“We are reviewing it, and it seems that it is around US $ 3,100 million. It rose a little … or enough. So the US $ 2,700 is now US $ 3,100,” Trump said.
Then, the head Fed denied his head and interrupted the president, stating that he was not aware of an increase in the cost of the project.
“Trump just left,” Trump replied, showing him a document. Then, Powell explained to the president that his calculations included the renovations of the Martin building, located on the other side of the street of the construction place, and whose remodeling was completed five years ago.
The Fed has argued that the cost overruns are largely due to the need to preserve a historic building of almost 90 years, instead of building a new headquarters from scratch.
Trump stepped on the Marrner S. Eccles building in Washington, the Fed headquarters, along with the budget director, Russell Vought, and Bill Court, head of the Federal Housing Financing Agency, who are among Powell’s toughest critics within the president’s circle.
Also present were Republican senators Thom Tillis and Tim Scott; the president’s cabinet subginete, William Abundo; the general advisor of the OMB, Mark Paoletta; and Stuart Levenbach, official of the National Public Planning Commission.
Trump’s interest
Trump’s visit to the Fed reinforces his confrontational position regarding the measures taken by Powell.
“I have a single discrepancy … I just want to see one thing, it’s very simple: interest rates have to go down,” he said. He added that “he did not believe necessary” to dismiss Powell, whose mandate as president of the FED expires in May 2026.
The confrontation between the president and the FED has generated a growing concern among investors, who consider that the independence of the Central Bank in the formulation of monetary policy is essential for the role of the dollar as a global reserve currency.
In an interview with the Financial Times, the director of the Pimco Investment Manager, Dan Ivascyn, warned that it would be “very negative for markets” any attempt to limit the independence of the Federal Reserve.
“The markets value the independence of the central banks, at least in regard to the fixation of monetary policy rates,” IVASCYN told the British newspaper.
Take advantage of the new experience, receive by WhatsApp our enriched digital newspaper Peru21 Epaper.
Now available in Yape! Find us in Yape Promos.
Recommended video
