Federal Reserve Speaker Jerome Powell heads to Capitol Hill for two days of testimony this week before the House and Senate committees overseeing the central bank and the financial industry. The Fed’s chair is required by law to appear before Congress twice a year.
The hearing comes when President Donald Trump announces 25% tariffs on all foreign steel and aluminum coming into the country.
Below is a hearing between the Senate Banking Committee with Jerome Powell.
Members of the council urged him to cut fees more quickly. He was also burned into issues that have a higher profile under the Trump administration, including crypto regulations, banking regulations and allegations of “de-banking”.
The government said Friday that employers added solid jobs last month, but the unemployment rate has fallen to 4% for the second straight month, marking its historically pretty low. Employment in November and December was revised much higher.
Jobs “strengthens our confidence that the Fed’s disconnection cycle is over,” Bank of America economists wrote in a note Friday.
At the December meeting, Fed officials painted pencils for two interest rate cuts this year, but economists and Wall Street investors are increasingly skeptical, predicting that there will be no cuts this year at all. Some people do.
Original issue: February 11, 2025 9:57am EST
