Trump met Powell for the first time since taking office, and the two still "talk to each other"

On May 30, US President Donald Trump met with Federal Reserve Chairperson Jerome Powell for the first time in his second term on Thursday. Trump criticized Powell for failing to lower borrowing costs. Powell, for his part, insisted that any decision would not be based on the president's request. According to a statement from the Federal Reserve, Trump invited Powell to meet with him "to discuss economic developments, including growth, employment, and inflation." Powell did not discuss his expectations for monetary policy, only stressing that the path of policy will depend entirely on upcoming economic information and what it means for the outlook. Powell said he and his FOMC colleagues will make policy decisions based solely on careful, objective, and non-political analysis. Mr. Trump has previously described Mr. Powell as a "fool" and a "big loser", while adding that "it's not enough to fire Powell any faster". At a press conference on Thursday afternoon, White House press secretary Levitt confirmed that the two had met, adding: "The president did say that he thought Powell was making a mistake not to lower interest rates, which puts us at a disadvantage economically relative to other countries, and the president has been vocal about that, both publicly and privately."