Colby Smith
@colbyLsmith
@nytimes correspondent writing about the Federal Reserve and the US economy. Previously @FT, @TheEconomist, @BloombergTV. [email protected]
Thrilled to announce I’ve joined @nytimes to lead their coverage of the Federal Reserve and write about the US economy. Big thank you to @FT for a wonderful nearly 7 years. You can now reach me at [email protected]
Two people with knowledge of the matter said that a draft of a letter firing Powell was given to the president earlier in the week by William J. Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency @maggieNYT
Some advisers to and allies of Trump insist the president is trolling Powell and hoping to torment the Fed chair but won’t actually follow through with trying to fire him But the existence of a draft letter doing so suggests he is engaging in the type of moves that he often does…
Some advisers to and allies of Trump insist the president is trolling Powell and hoping to torment the Fed chair but won’t actually follow through with trying to fire him But the existence of a draft letter doing so suggests he is engaging in the type of moves that he often does…
Bessent refers to Fed independence as a "jewel box" but suggests the central bank has jeopardized it w/ "mission creep" "This autonomy is threatened by persistent mandate creep into areas beyond its core mission, provoking justifiable criticism that unnecessarily casts a cloud…
Today in a CNBC interview, I called for a review of the Federal Reserve. It is my belief that the central bank should conduct an exhaustive internal review of its non-monetary policy operations. Significant mission creep and institutional growth have taken the Fed into areas that…
New @nytimes op-ed by former Fed chairs Ben Bernanke and Janet Yellen nytimes.com/2025/07/21/opi…
As the White House continues to scrutinize the Fed's HQ renovations, the central bank publishes a virtual tour on its website and highlights changes made since the 2021 proposal federalreserve.gov/faqs/building-…
The Fed's decisions are always closely watched, but Trump's attacks have now put them under an even more intense microscope Officials are expected to hold interest rates steady later this month, but there could be a path to cut in September nytimes.com/2025/07/18/bus… @nytimes
Fed governor Chris Waller officially backs a 25bp cut at the July meeting and says policy should be back to neutral "With inflation near target and the upside risks to inflation limited, we should not wait until the labor market deteriorates before we cut the policy rate"
Can Trump fire Powell? He likely lacks a case, legal experts say. “There has to be a showing of misconduct, and Powell would have a lot of avenues to challenge the administration if they proceed against him.” nytimes.com/2025/07/16/us/… @nytimes @TonyRomm
BREAKING: Pres. Trump showed off a draft of a letter firing Powell, during a meeting with roughly a dozen House Republicans on Tuesday night, polling them as to whether he should do it and indicating that he likely would. @maggieNYT @colbyLsmith nytimes.com/live/2025/07/1…
Trump promised not just to stop inflation but to cut costs. Now inflation is heading up again, ticking up to a 2.7% annual rate last month from 2.4% the month before. @colbyLsmith nytimes.com/2025/07/15/bus…
Trump's tariffs are starting to leave a bigger imprint on the economy, pushing up prices in June for categories like household furnishings (furniture, appliances etc) that are heavily exposed to the levies in place nytimes.com/2025/07/15/bus… @nytimes
Scoop: Fed Chair Powell responds to Senate Banking Chair Scott and Sen. Warren on building renovations politico.com/news/2025/07/1…
The president has had little reason to scale back his global trade war ambitions with inflation subdued, unemployment stable and stock markets back to record highs. But the latest escalation risks jeopardize all that "The higher that tariffs end up being, the more…
I'm skeptical he will resign from the chairmanship without a fight. That said, I fear the campaign will reduce the odds that he will stick around as a governor after his chairmanship comes to end. That would provide a smoother transition for Trump's chosen successor.
A new line of attack on the Fed over its renovations has raised alarm that the White House is trying to lay the groundwork to fire Powell for cause "What they’re trying to do is build up a public case and to discredit him," says @ProfKateJudge nytimes.com/2025/07/11/bus…
New FAQs from the Fed lay out details intended to support Powell's statements to Congress regarding its renovations, amid accusations against the chair Some legal experts worry this is a prelude to the White House trying to remove him for cause nytimes.com/2025/07/11/bus… @nytimes
The Fed has taken steps to defend itself against accusations that its chair had mismanaged renovations underway at its headquarters in Washington D.C. and then mislead Congress, updating its FAQs on the project on Friday federalreserve.gov/faqs/building-…
The Fed has taken steps to defend itself against accusations that its chair had mismanaged renovations underway at its headquarters in Washington D.C. and then mislead Congress, updating its FAQs on the project on Friday federalreserve.gov/faqs/building-…
Austan Goolsbee says tariff re-escalation would complicate decisions around cuts: "The more we keep adding things to the mix that make it hard to figure out, ‘Are prices going to be rising or not?’ The more it’s just throwing more dirt back in the air." wsj.com/economy/centra…
On Thursday, Fed governor Chris Waller, a contender to replace Powell as chair, stressed that his support for a rate cut is "not political." That is the kind of assurance that whomever is chosen is going to have to provide to overcome concerns that they are acting at Trump's…