Bullion hit another record on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, while the dollar steadied and equities mostly fell as United States President Donald Trump’s latest salvo against Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell added fuel to fears about the central bank’s independence.
With the United States tariff blitz still causing ructions on global trading floors, investors are now dealing with the added worry that Trump will try to remove the country’s top banker, which many fear could hammer already fragile market confidence.
Trump took a swipe at Powell last week for his warning that the sweeping levies would likely reignite inflation, saying his “termination cannot come fast enough” and adding that “I’m not happy with him. I let him know it, and if I want him out, he’ll be out of there real fast, believe me.”
While that raised eyebrows, the president sent shivers through markets on Monday by calling on the Fed boss again to make pre-emptive cuts to interest rates and calling him a “major loser” and “Mr. Too Late”.
He said on his Truth Social platform that there was “virtually” no inflation as energy and food costs were well down and pointed to the several reductions by the European Central Bank.
The outbursts have fanned concern that Trump is preparing to oust Powell, with top economic adviser Kevin Hassett saying Friday the president was looking at whether he could do so.
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Panicked Wall Street investors once again dumped U.S. assets, with all three main indexes ending down around 2.5 per cent on Monday.
National Australia Bank’s Tapas Strickland said: “The first volley on Thursday had little market reaction, but Monday’s second barrage has seen an intensification of the ‘sell America trade’.
“Whether or not President Trump is legally able and willing to move against the US Fed, the jousting underscores the loss of US exceptionalism and the very real policy risk for investors.”
The rush for safety saw gold hit yet another record above $3,457, and while the dollar steadied after the previous day’s selloff, it remained under pressure against its major peers.
Stocks swung between gains and losses on the first full day of business after the Easter break, AFP reported.
Hong Kong, Sydney, Taipei, Jakarta, Wellington and Manila dropped, while Shanghai, Singapore and Seoul edged up.
Key figures on Tuesday:
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.1 per cent at 34,255.71 (break)
Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.3 per cent at 3,301.74
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.3 per cent at 21,330.37
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1500 from $1.1510 on Monday
Pound/dollar: UP $1.3384 at $1.3377
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 140.76 yen from 140.89 yen
Euro/pound: DOWN at 85.91 pence from 86.03 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.0 per cent at $63.73 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.7 per cent at $66.75 per barrel
New York – Dow: DOWN 2.5 per cent at 38,170.41 (close)
London – FTSE 100: Closed for a holiday
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