Donald Trump, in a social-media post, said Fed chairman Jerome Powell should “resign immediately.” It was an escalation of his public complaints about Powell, who Trump believes is keeping interest rates high for no reason.

The Fed chief has repeatedly declined to say whether he will step down when his four-year term as chair expires in May, or remain on the Fed board.

If they want to make a mistake here and not cut, that’s fine,” Bessent told CNBC, insisting that tariffs imposed by Trump since taking office in January had not fueled inflation