Nick Timiraos

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Trump's latest Fed attack is playing out in the court of public opinion—not a court of law. An institution that depends on credibility is defending spending choices on buildings, issues with greater salience than the arcane details of rate policy. wsj.com/economy/centra…

Goldman: "Market participants seem to agree that the risk to Fed independence is rising, as 5-year 5-year forward inflation swaps have recently decoupled higher from their prior close relationship with the 2-year note yield."

Yellen: I don't talk to Secretary Bessent. He has undone everything I worked on at Treasury. Bessent: "I couldn't even tell you what Secretary Yellen's China policy was, aside from consuming beer and mushrooms." via @bobdavis187 thewirechina.com/2025/07/18/jan…

Bostic says he's seeing more tariff-cost-sharing through the supply chain than might have been expected: "At the beginning of this year, almost everyone thought that they would fully pass through any kind of cost increase. Today we hear a much wider range of strategies. Some…

Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic says the Fed still doesn't have much certainty on the ultimate level of tariff rates and the inflation-pass-through process has gotten murkier: "The diffusion of this through the economy, I think, is going to take a bit longer, and I think…

AP: The extensive use of marble in the renovated Fed building is, at least in part, the result of an executive order backed by Trump Trump appointees to the fine arts commission called for more “white Georgia marble” for the facade of building apnews.com/article/powell…

Inflation expectations declined to pre-Liberation Day levels in the University of Michigan survey though still remain well above the December 2024 level. Year-ahead expectations dropped to 4.4% in the preliminary July survey (5% in June) Five-years-ahead fell to 3.6% (prev 4%)

“This is not really a fight about building costs, it is a fight about Fed independence,” The Wall Street Journal chief economics correspondent @NickTimiraos says on rumors that President Trump was planning to replace Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

It's a Captain Obvious point but: this is setting up to be the most unusual Fed chair succession in over a generation. The first since Volcker succeeded Bill Miller in which the incoming chair promises to take the Fed in a very different direction from his or her predecessor.

No pickup in seasonally adjusted initial claims for unemployment benefits last week. Continuing claims continue to point to a slightly less tight labor market compared to a year ago.

Kevin Warsh is asked by @BeckyQuick if the next Fed chair is going to be indepedent. Warsh: "In a word, yes. I’ve strongly believed for 20 years, and history tells us, that the independent operations in the conduct of monetary policy is essential."

Piper Sandler's Andy Laperriere: "It's hard to know when this will matter to financial markets but the politicization of the Fed we are witnessing is a monumental development." "While we would not argue the Fed has been pure as the driven snow for the past 60 years (and…

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said markets want an independent Federal Reserve that isn't subject to political whims and suggested firing Powell could be damaging to financial markets. From a Wednesday interview on Fox: BAIER: President Trump asked House Republicans on…

Removing Powell as Fed chair could lead to a messy, drawn-out standoff. The Fed owns its buildings and controls its security. If Trump attempts removal, Powell could try to stay until the courts uphold it or the Senate confirms a replacement. wsj.com/economy/centra…

President Trump denied that he was planning to attempt to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell after polling GOP lawmakers during a closed-door meeting about whether he should oust him. “I don’t rule out anything, but I think it’s highly unlikely." wsj.com/politics/polic…

NEW: Trump asked a group of lawmakers if he should fire Jerome Powell – and people in room voiced approval, sources told @CBSNews. Several said Trump indicated he will do it. Trump has been socializing the possibility of a for-cause firing, but White House has not yet formally…