Trump slams Fed Chair Powell, renews call for rate cuts: 'His termination cannot come fast enough'

US President Donald Trump launched a fresh attack on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday, saying his exit from the central bank "cannot come fast enough" and doubling down on his demand for immediate interest rate cuts.

In a post on his platform Truth Social, Trump wrote, “Powell's termination cannot come fast enough. Too Late should have lowered Interest Rates, like the ECB, long ago, but he should certainly lower them now.”

Trump’s remarks came just a day after Powell defended the Fed’s independence during an address at the Economic Club of Chicago, saying it is “very widely understood and supported in Washington and in Congress, where it really matters.”

The comments also follow Powell’s warning that Trump’s proposed sweeping tariffs on all U.S. trade partners could force the Fed into a difficult position—choosing between combating inflation or supporting employment.

On April 16, Powell warned about the impact of Trump's tariffs.

"Unemployment is likely to go up as the economy slows, in all likelihood, and inflation is likely to go up as tariffs find their way and some part of those tariffs come to be paid by the public," Powell said April 16, in remarks to the Economic Club of Chicago.

Despite Trump’s repeated calls for rate cuts, the Federal Reserve has kept its benchmark rate steady at 4.25%-4.50% since December, after a series of reductions in late 2024. The central bank has signaled a cautious, data-driven approach rather than immediate easing.

Trump, who nominated Powell to lead the Fed in 2017, has frequently clashed with the central bank’s decisions. He has even threatened to remove Powell, part of a broader push to assert greater executive control over independent agencies—an effort currently being reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Powell, reappointed to a second four-year term by President Joe Biden in 2022, acknowledged on Thursday that the Fed is “watching the case carefully” but expressed confidence that it would not impact the central bank’s operations. He stressed that the Fed’s credibility is critical, not just for the U.S. economy, but for global markets closely aligned with its monetary policy signals.