{"id":113037,"date":"2026-01-28T20:50:24","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T20:50:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=113037"},"modified":"2026-01-28T20:50:24","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T20:50:24","slug":"us-federal-reserve-holds-interest-rates-despite-white-house-pressure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=113037","title":{"rendered":"US Federal Reserve holds interest rates despite White House pressure"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>2 Minute, 40 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>
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The US Federal Reserve voted to hold interest rates on Wednesday despite White House pressure to lower borrowing costs.<\/p>\n

The Fed said it will keep its key lending rate between 3.5% to 3.75%, stating that economic activity in the US \u201chas been expanding at a solid pace\u201d.<\/p>\n

There are signs the employment market is stabilising \u2013 job creation is sluggish, but the unemployment rate has ticked lower. Policymakers continue to monitor the economic impact of three interest rate cuts last year.<\/p>\n

Trump is soon expected to announce a replacement for Fed chair Jerome Powell, whom the president has frequently criticised for not reducing interest rates quickly enough.<\/p>\n

Two Fed officials voted in favour of an interest rate cut \u2013 Stephen Miran, who is on leave from his post at the White House where he leads Trump\u2019s Council of Economic Advisers, and Christopher Waller, a Trump appointee whose name has been floated as contender to succeed Powell.<\/p>\n

Despite the dissents, the Fed board stressed improvements in recent economic data, which gave policymakers confidence to hold rates steady.<\/p>\n

It said: \u201cJob gains have remained low, and the unemployment rate has shown some signs of stabilisation.\u201d<\/p>\n

But looming in the background is a recent federal criminal probe that has intensified concern about political pressure on the Fed and its independence.<\/p>\n

After a year of Trump\u2019s relentless attacks on Powell \u2013 whose term as chair ends in May \u2013 federal prosecutors\u00a0opened a criminal investigation\u00a0earlier this month over testimony he gave to a Senate committee last year about renovations to Federal Reserve buildings.<\/p>\n

Wall Street investors are eagerly awaiting Powell\u2019s press conference following the central bank\u2019s rate decision \u2013 his first since condemning the Department of Justice (DoJ) probe.<\/p>\n

The S&P 500 stock index fluctuated ahead of his remarks, briefly surpassing 7,000 points for the first time on Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n

Powell previously said he believed the federal investigation stemmed from Trump\u2019s anger that the Fed had not brought interest rates down quickly enough.<\/p>\n

Former heads of the US central bank\u00a0strongly criticised\u00a0the investigation, too, describing it as a bid to undermine the Fed\u2019s independence.<\/p>\n

The president has publicly urged Powell to cut interest rates in order to reduce the US government\u2019s hefty borrowing costs and to make it easier for Americans to get mortgages and other loans.<\/p>\n

Trump has also launched personal attacks against Powell \u2013 whom the president appointed as Fed chair during his first term in the White House \u2013 calling the central banker a \u201cmajor loser\u201d and \u201cnumbskull\u201d.<\/p>\n

Last August, Trump said he was removing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, accusing her of mortgage fraud, a claim she has denied. The Supreme Court is now weighing the case.<\/p>\n

Justices from the left and right last week\u00a0cited concerns about implications\u00a0for central bank independence and the wider economy.<\/p>\n

Another wild card looming over Wall Street: Trump\u2019s pick to replace Powell at the end of his term.<\/p>\n

Whoever\u00a0steps into the role\u00a0will inevitably face credibility concerns, as Trump\u2019s pressure on the Fed has raised questions about whether the next chair will act independently.<\/p>\n

BlackRock executive Rick Rieder has emerged in recent days as a front-runner.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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