2025-07-16 20:43

Markets recover after brief selloff on Powell firing reports Indexes close up: Dow 0.53%, S&P 500 0.32%, Nasdaq 0.26% Nasdaq posts fifth record high in last six sessions Bank stocks mixed after Q2 earnings US June PPI unchanged on a monthly basis July 16 (Reuters) - Wall Street benchmarks closed modestly higher on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq Composite achieving its latest record finish, despite a chaotic half hour when news reports suggested U.S. President Donald Trump was set to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Shortly before midday, the benchmark S&P 500 and Nasdaq fell more than 1%, while the dollar plunged and Treasury yields rose, after Bloomberg News reported the possibility of replacing Powell, citing an unidentified White House official. Sign up here. Separately, Reuters News reported, citing a source, that Trump was open to the idea of firing Powell. Trump was quick to deny the reports, even as he unleashed a new barrage of criticism against Powell for not cutting interest rates. "The Fed's independence is hugely important to our overall economy, so you saw the market react when that initial headline came out," said Dylan Bell, chief investment officer at CalBay Investments. Trump's denial revived equity markets, with the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab closing at 20,730.49, a gain of 52.69 points, or 0.26%. It was the fifth session in six that the technology-heavy index has posted a record high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab rose 231.49 points, or 0.53%, to 44,254.78, and the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 19.94 points, or 0.32%, at 6,263.70. Since Trump's April tariff announcement, which initially sent U.S. equities into a spin, U.S. stock markets have been on a tear. The S&P 500 most recently posted a record finish last week. Amid this buoyancy, though, has been investor angst about the prospect of Powell being removed from his job before his term ends next May, as Trump has repeatedly criticized him for not cutting U.S. rates quickly enough. The CBOE Volatility Index (.VIX) , opens new tab, Wall Street's "fear gauge," hit a more than three-week high in the wake of the initial Powell reports, but eased from those levels. CalBay's Bell said while volatility risk from news headlines would persist, the overall positive state of the U.S. economy was a more important factor in driving investor moves. Despite Trump's demands for easier credit, Fed officials have resisted cutting rates until there is clarity on whether his tariffs on U.S. trading partners reignite inflation. This concern was iterated by Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic on Wednesday, saying in a Fox Business interview that pressures may be building in the wake of rising import taxes. Inflation has been in focus this week. Producer prices data released on Wednesday showed growth flatlined in June, as tariff-driven goods costs were balanced out by weaker service prices. Just a day earlier, unexpectedly strong consumer inflation had already dented hopes for deeper Fed rate cuts, with Trump's tariffs partly fueling the uptick in prices. On Wednesday, the second day of this earnings season, another round of stronger profits from Wall Street's big banks failed to ignite their own stock prices. Goldman Sachs (GS.N) , opens new tab climbed 0.9% after notching a 22% earnings surge, while Bank of America (BAC.N) , opens new tab and Morgan Stanley (MS.N) , opens new tab declined 0.3% and 1.3%, respectively, despite posting higher profits. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) , opens new tab soared 6.2%, and was the second-best performer on the S&P 500, after halving its expectations for costs this year related to new tariffs and raising its full-year sales and profit forecast. Semiconductor stocks were sluggish after news that Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab would be allowed to sell its H2O chips in China had fueled gains in the previous session. The semiconductor index (.SOX) , opens new tab slipped 0.4%, from the 12-month high recorded on Tuesday. https://www.reuters.com/business/sp-500-nasdaq-futures-slip-rate-tariff-concerns-2025-07-16/

2025-07-16 20:39

Trump does not shut the door on attempting an ouster Senator Tillis defends Fed's independence as key to US credibility Powell has said he plans to serve out his term WASHINGTON, July 16 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday he is not planning to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, but he kept the door open to the possibility and renewed his criticism of the central bank chief for not lowering interest rates. A Bloomberg report earlier Wednesday saying that Trump was likely to fire Powell soon sparked a drop in stocks and the dollar, and a rise in Treasury yields. Sign up here. Trump, who has been criticizing Powell on an almost daily basis for being "TOO LATE" to cut interest rates, said the report wasn't true. But Trump confirmed he had floated the idea with Republican lawmakers on Tuesday evening, marking the latest chapter in an escalating campaign by Trump against the independent central bank and its embattled chief. "I don't rule out anything, but I think it's highly unlikely unless he has to leave for fraud," Trump said, a reference to recent White House and Republican lawmaker criticism of cost overruns in the $2.5 billion renovation of the Fed's historic headquarters in Washington. There has been no evidence of fraud, and the Fed has pushed back on criticism of its handling of the project. Powell, who was nominated by Trump during his first term in late 2017 to lead the Fed and then nominated for a second term by Democratic President Joe Biden four years later, has repeatedly said he intends to serve out his term, which runs through May 15, 2026. A recent Supreme Court opinion has solidified a long-standing interpretation of the law that the Fed chair cannot be fired over policy differences but only "for cause." In an interview aired later on Wednesday, Trump was again asked if he was thinking of removing Powell. "I'd love it if he wants to resign, that would be up to him," Trump told the Real America's Voice. "They say it would disrupt the market if I did." Treasury yields pared declines and stocks ended the day higher after Trump's comments, which included the familiar complaint that Powell is a "terrible" chair for keeping the Fed's short-term policy rate in the 4.25%-4.50% range since December while the central bank assesses the impact of sharply higher tariffs on inflation. Trump blames the Fed for higher long-term rates that increase the cost of U.S. government borrowing. His attacks on Powell have continued since his signing on July 4 of the "Big Beautiful Bill," the tax and spending bill that independent analysts say will add trillions of dollars to the U.S. deficit. "A HUGE MISTAKE" Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who opposed the tax bill and has since said he won't run for reelection, on Wednesday delivered a spirited defense of an independent Fed, which economists say is the linchpin of U.S. financial and price stability. "There's been some talk about potentially firing the Fed chair," said Tillis, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, which oversees the Fed and confirms presidential nominations to its Board. Subjecting the Fed to direct presidential control would be a "huge mistake," he said. "The consequences of firing a Fed chair, just because political people don't agree with that economic decision, will be to undermine the credibility of the United States going forward, and I would argue if it happens you are going to see a pretty immediate response, and we've got to avoid that," said Tillis. Other Republicans downplayed the possibility of Trump's firing Powell. Asked if it would be a problem for Trump to fire Powell, Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters: “My understanding is he doesn’t have any intention of doing that.” "President Trump's own analysis and that of his Treasury secretary is that he cannot fire Jay Powell," House Financial Services Committee Chair French Hill told CNBC earlier on Wednesday. RENOVATIONS AT THE FED Last week, the White House appeared to try to lay the groundwork for firing Powell for cause when the director of the Office of Management and Budget, Russell Vought, sent Powell a letter saying that Trump was "extremely troubled" by the renovations of two Fed buildings. Powell responded by asking the U.S. central bank's inspector general to review the project. The central bank also posted a "frequently asked questions" fact sheet , opens new tab, which rebutted some of Vought's assertions about VIP dining rooms and elevators that he said added to the costs. "Nobody is fooled by President Trump and Republicans' sudden interest in building renovations — it's clear pretext to fire Fed Chair Powell," Elizabeth Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee and herself a longtime critic of Powell, posted on X. Warren was the committee's only member to vote against Powell's renomination as chair in 2022, saying he had not done enough on regulation. Fed policymakers are worried that, with 40-year-high inflation only recently in the rear-view mirror, any bump up in inflation coupled with a too-early cut to short-term borrowing costs could ignite expectations that inflation is back, a potentially self-fulfilling prophecy that could weaken the economy and undermine progress on price stability. Analysts said they feared the pressure campaign on Powell would continue -- with deleterious effects on the Fed's ability to do its congressionally mandated job of both keeping prices stable and maximizing employment. "Any reduction in the independence of the Fed would likely add upside risks to an inflation outlook that is already subject to upward pressures from tariffs and somewhat elevated inflation expectations," wrote JP Morgan chief U.S. economist Michael Feroli, who said he doubts the "saga" of the president's repeated threats to remove Powell is over. Feroli and others noted that continued pressure on Powell would likely push up longer-term interest rates as investors demand more protection from the risk of higher inflation -- making U.S. government borrowing more, not less, expensive. The "formal process" for identifying a successor to Powell is under way, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said. Bessent is one candidate for the job, along with White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett, former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh and Fed Governor Christopher Waller. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-indicated-republican-lawmakers-he-will-fire-feds-powell-cbs-reports-2025-07-16/

2025-07-16 20:35

July 16 (Reuters) - Kinder Morgan (KMI.N) , opens new tab posted a 24% rise in second-quarter profit on Wednesday, as higher volumes of natural gas were transported through its pipelines and demand for the company's infrastructure rose. Pipeline operators such as Kinder Morgan are benefiting from an increase in demand for natgas, primarily driven by LNG exports as well as rising electricity needs. Sign up here. The United States was the largest exporter of LNG in 2024, and exports of the superchilled gas are expected to increase even further, as new terminals come online after President Donald Trump lifted a pause on new permits in January. Kinder Morgan has long-term contracts to move 8 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) of natural gas to LNG facilities and expects to move 12 bcfd by 2028. "With historic growing natural gas demand forecasts, a positive federal regulatory environment, and highly supportive federal permitting agencies, the future for our company is very bright," said Executive Chairman Richard Kinder. "We are also actively pursuing well over 5 Bcfd of opportunities to serve the natural gas power generation sector," Kinder added. Roughly 50% of the company's $9.3 billion project backlog is dedicated to projects supporting power generation. Kinder Morgan's results come as the energy industry braces for the impact of Trump's tariffs on most imports, which the company said poses "some challenges". It expects tariffs to impact only 1% of the existing project costs. The company, which moves roughly 40% of the country's total natural gas output, said it transported about 44,585 billion British thermal units per day of natgas in the reported quarter, compared with 43,123 BBtu/d last year. Total delivery volumes, which includes refined products such as jet fuel and diesel fuel, also rose over 2% to 2.21 million barrels per day. The Houston, Texas-based company's net income came in at $715 million, or 32 cents per share, for the second quarter, compared with $575 million, or 26 cents per share, last year. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/pipeline-operator-kinder-morgan-posts-higher-second-quarter-profit-2025-07-16/

2025-07-16 20:04

July 16 - Holders of the digital tokens issued by World Liberty Financial, one of the crypto ventures of the family of Donald Trump, voted on Wednesday to make them tradeable, paving the way for their wide sale and purchase -- potentially boosting the value of the president's holdings of them. The World Liberty tokens, known as $WLFI, were sold to investors after the Trump family and their partners launched the venture - a "decentralised finance" platform that has also issued a stablecoin - last autumn. Sign up here. The tokens were not made tradeable at their initial sale. Instead, they gave holders a right to vote on some changes to the business, such as its underlying code. Early investors have said the primary draw of $WLFI was the connection to Trump and, in turn, their expectations the tokens would grow in value due to his backing. Making the tokens tradeable would see investors determine their price, enabling speculation, earning trading fees for exchanges that list them and likely stoking interest from a wider swath of crypto investors. The extent to which the Trump family, which reaps three-quarters of revenues from the initial sales of the tokens, will benefit from their wider trading is not clear. Gains in the tokens' price would, however, swell the value of the family's token holdings, the exact level of which is unclear. World Liberty and Trump's other crypto businesses have faced criticism from Democratic lawmakers and ethics experts as the president's administration reshapes regulations in the booming crypto sector. Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren and Democratic Representative Maxine Waters sent a letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission earlier this year in which they said, "The Trump family's financial stake in World Liberty Financial represents an unprecedented conflict of interest with the potential to influence the Trump Administration's oversight—or lack thereof—of the cryptocurrency industry." The World Liberty tokens have not been designated as securities by the SEC, meaning they are not subject to the same scrutiny as investments like stocks. The White House has said Trump's assets are in a trust managed by his children and that there are no conflicts of interest. The White House has not released the details of the trust arrangement. The Trump family business has been placed into a trust whose sole beneficiary is the president, meaning that the hundreds of millions of dollars from crypto deals struck while Trump is in office could hypothetically be withdrawn at any time, or at the latest, be at his disposal when he leaves office in less than four years. Trump's company, DT Marks DEFI LLC, was set to receive 22.5 billion out of a total 100 billion $WLFI tokens, according to a description of the project released in October. The president held 15.75 billion of the tokens at the end of last year, according to a public financial disclosure report published last month. The Trump family has made around $500 million from World Liberty since the platform was launched, according to Reuters calculations based on the company's terms and conditions, transactions traced by crypto analysis firms and publicly-disclosed deals. Asked by Reuters how the vote would impact the value of $WLFI tokens held by Trump and his family, the White House press office said: "This is not an inquiry for the White House." The Trump Organization did not respond to a request for comment. In response to Reuters' questions about how the tokens will become tradable, a World Liberty spokesperson said: "Additional details are forthcoming." The venture says on its website that making $WLFI tradeable "brings us one step closer to building a more open, transparent, and powerful financial system." "The American public should be very concerned about the president's vested interests in the cryptocurrency market," said Chris Swartz, a former longtime attorney at the U.S. government's Office of Government Ethics, including under both Trump administrations, who now serves as senior ethics counsel for Democracy Defenders Action, a legal advocacy group. "Not only is it a potential conduit for foreign emoluments and other illicit payments, but it puts the president in competition against other cryptocurrency issuers at the same time he is advocating for digital asset marketplace legislation. That is a clear conflict of interest." 99.9% SUPPORT The World Liberty proposal to "formally initiate the tradability of the token," posted on its website on July 9, was approved by 99.94% of around 20,900 votes. Some voters cited expectations of price gains or support for Trump as reasons for their choice. "We invested to get rich," one wrote on the World Liberty website. "To make america great again," wrote another. The identities of nearly all holders are hidden behind wallet addresses. A Milan-based person using the name Paolo, who declined to give his full name, told Reuters he had bought 95,000 $WLFI tokens for about $5,000. $WLFI tokens were sold in two initial tranches at $0.015 and $0.05. Paolo said he voted in favour of making the tokens tradeable and planned to hold the tokens until they reach $12. "Then I try to buy more when the price drops," he said. The World Liberty proposal said the timing for making the tokens tradeable, and the eligibility requirements, would be determined at a later, unspecified date. Tokens held by World Liberty's founders, team and advisers would not be initially "unlocked" for trading and would be subject to a longer "unlock schedule," it said. The implementation of approved proposals would "occur within a reasonable time from the passage of the applicable proposal,” according to the project description from October. https://www.reuters.com/business/trumps-world-liberty-crypto-tokens-become-tradable-2025-07-16/

2025-07-16 19:27

House aims to advance three cryptocurrency bills Stablecoin framework bill poised for Trump's signature after House approval Republicans look to attach central bank digital currency bill to defense spending measure WASHINGTON, July 16 (Reuters) - The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives cleared key procedural hurdles on crypto legislation on Wednesday, a day after President Donald Trump intervened to save the initiative, paving the way for the first federal law for digital assets. The votes came after more than nine hours of private talks as leaders worked to win over lawmakers skeptical of how the package was structured. Sign up here. A bill to establish a federal framework for stablecoins is likely to be the first to be passed, in what would be a watershed victory for the crypto industry. It has already been approved by the Senate, and if approved by the House, it would go to Trump for his signature. Stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a constant value, usually a 1:1 dollar peg, are commonly used by crypto traders to move funds. They have gained much momentum in recent years, offering faster and cheaper transaction costs than moving money through a bank. In addition to stablecoins, the House is set to consider a bill to establish market structure rules for crypto products, including defining when the products are a commodity and not subject to oversight from the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Senate has yet to take up a similar measure. The third bill, strongly backed by conservatives, would prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a digital currency of its own. Some Republicans argue a Fed digital currency could give the government too much control over Americans' finances. Current Fed leaders have said they are not considering such an initiative. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer said on X late Wednesday that the third bill would be attached to a separate defense authorization bill as part of the overall compromise. House Republicans had suffered a setback in their bid to advance the bills on Tuesday, when several conservative Republicans joined with Democrats to block an earlier procedural vote. But Trump met with the hold-outs and paved the way for another vote on Wednesday. Even after those talks, subsequent procedural votes required to consider the legislation proved fraught, as Republican leaders had to spend several hours convincing conservative lawmakers to allow the bills to proceed. A handful of members had resisted efforts to consider the three main pieces of crypto legislation separately. https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-house-clears-procedural-hurdle-cryptocurrency-legislation-2025-07-16/

2025-07-16 19:24

Bank of America timeline unclear Morgan Stanley monitoring stablecoin developments Citigroup considering issuing stablecoin for digital payments NEW YORK, July 16 (Reuters) - Some large U.S. lenders, including Bank of America (BAC.N) , opens new tab and Citibank (C.N) , opens new tab, are working on launching stablecoins at a time when the country is looking to adopt more crypto-friendly regulations. BofA CEO Brian Moynihan said on Wednesday the bank is working on launching a stablecoin, and investors can expect the lender to move forward with it, without giving a timeline. Sign up here. Stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a constant value, are usually pegged to a fiat currency such as the U.S. dollar and are commonly used by crypto traders to move funds between tokens. "We feel both the industry and ourselves will have responses. We've done a lot of work," Moynihan, CEO of the second-largest U.S. bank, said. "We are still trying to figure out how big or small it is, because in some places there are not big amounts of money movement. So you would expect us all to move, our company to move on that," Moynihan told analysts on a post-earnings conference call. Moynihan said Bank of America was trying to understand client demand, which was not high currently, and would roll out a stablecoin at an appropriate time, likely in partnership with other players. He compared banks' interest in stablecoin with their adoption of peer-to-peer digital payments platforms such as Zelle and Venmo. U.S. President Donald Trump has promised to be the "crypto president," popularizing its mainstream use in the country. A series of crypto industry-friendly bills is expected to progress through Congress this week, paving the way for digital assets to potentially further integrate into traditional finance. One of the most notable is a bill that would establish a regulatory framework for stablecoins and is likely to advance to Trump's desk for approval. The banks are still awaiting legal clarity, Moynihan said, explaining why progress has been slower than some investors anticipated. Morgan Stanley (MS.N) , opens new tab Chief Financial Officer Sharon Yeshaya said on Wednesday the bank was following stablecoin developments closely. "We're looking both at the landscape, the uses, and the potential uses for our own client base. But, it really is a little early to tell, especially for the businesses we run versus businesses that you might see from competitors, on how a stablecoin would play in," she added. Citigroup (C.N) , opens new tab CEO Jane Fraser also said the bank may issue a stablecoin to facilitate digital payments. "We are looking at the issuance of a Citi stablecoin," she told analysts after reporting earnings on Tuesday. "This is a good opportunity for us." JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) , opens new tab CEO Jamie Dimon, who has been a vocal skeptic of bitcoin, said on Tuesday the bank will be involved in stablecoins, without giving details. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/bank-america-expects-launch-stablecoins-morgan-stanley-weighs-use-2025-07-16/