Stocks Climb as Trump Denies Plan to Fire Powell | Closing Bell Analysis

Comprehensive cross-platform coverage of the U.S. market close on Bloomberg Television, Bloomberg Radio, and YouTube with Romaine Bostick, Scarlet Fu, Carol Massar and Tim Stenovec.

Speculation about the fate of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell set off a short-lived tempest in financial markets Wednesday, with volatility mostly quelled after President Donald Trump said he has no plans to fire the central bank chief and was only discussing it in “concept.”

The S&P 500 bounced as Trump said he is “not planning on doing anything” to remove Powell, after a White House official said the president was likely to seek the Fed Chair’s ouster soon. Treasury two-year yields, which are more sensitive to imminent Fed moves, slid five basis points to 3.89%. The dollar halted a four-day advance. Softer-than-estimated inflation data also helped fuel the moves on Wednesday, reinforcing bets on Fed rate cuts in 2025.

Anyone hoping to discern from today’s market action how investors would treat Powell’s firing had a litany of moving parts to consider. While the initial reaction was relatively modest, traders may have simply cast the episode as the latest political theater.

Framed as rhetorical pressure than an imminent rupture in Fed leadership, the trading action may therefore provide a poor proxy for how Wall Street would react if Trump actually removed Powell — a prospect that strategists warn would rattle global markets.

--------

Watch Bloomberg Radio LIVE on YouTube

Weekdays 7am-6pm ET

Follow us on X

Subscribe to our Podcasts:

Bloomberg Daybreak

Bloomberg Surveillance

Bloomberg Intelligence

Balance of Power

Bloomberg Businessweek

Listen on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto with the Bloomberg Business app:

Apple CarPlay

Android Auto

Visit our YouTube channels:

Bloomberg Podcasts

Bloomberg Television

Bloomberg Originals