Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Good morning. Some encouraging news as the Fed resists Trump pressure and holds steady.
Essentially, the economy has once again surprised us with its strength, not for the first time.
But as Jerome Powell prepares to step down as chair, he had some pointed advice for his eventual successor. The Washington Post explains why some pardoned January 6th rioters want taxpayer compensation and what makes tens of thousands of people join a waitlist for beans. It's Thursday, January 29th.
Chapter 2: What does the Fed's decision to keep rates steady mean for the economy?
I'm Shemitah Basu. This is Apple News Today. Only weeks after being threatened with DOJ investigations by the Trump administration, Fed Chair Jerome Powell took to the podium yesterday, this time to present some cautiously optimistic news. The committee voted 10 to 2 in favor of holding interest rates in the 3.5 to 3.75 percent range.
Chapter 3: How has the U.S. economy surprised analysts recently?
Powell noted there had been clear improvement in the outlook for the U.S. economy in the year ahead.
The U.S. economy expanded at a solid pace last year and is coming into 2026 on a firm footing. While job gains have remained low, the unemployment rate has shown some signs of stabilization, and inflation remains somewhat elevated.
So for now, the economy is continuing to go through a period of what's being called low-fire, low-hire.
Chapter 4: What advice did Jerome Powell give to his successor?
Inflation, meanwhile, continues above the 2% target. Powell pointed to tariffs as a reason things are getting more expensive, but he sounded relatively relaxed that they would not lead to wider sustained inflation.
Most of the overrun in goods prices is from tariffs. And that's actually good news because if it weren't from tariffs, it might mean it's from inflation. demand. And, you know, that's a harder problem to solve.
Chapter 5: Why are some January 6th rioters seeking financial compensation?
We do think tariffs are likely to move through and be a one-time price increase.
The decision matched Wall Street's expectations, and among the Fed's voting members, there was less division than previous decisions. One analyst joked it was ultimately a very boring meeting during very extraordinary times.
Those extraordinary times are surely a reference to Powell's recent remarks criticizing the Trump administration for serving him with subpoenas as they investigate the costs of a building renovation, something Powell believes is a pretense to intimidate the Fed.
Yesterday, he largely avoided getting into that, but he was asked about his appearance at Fed Governor Lisa Cook's Supreme Court case, in which she's challenging Trump's attempts to fire her.
I would say that that case is perhaps the most important legal case in the Fed's 113-year history. And as I thought about it, I thought it might be hard to explain why I didn't attend.
Amid Powell's assessment, there's been some broader economic shifts in recent weeks worth paying attention to. Many investors feeling skittish about the security of the dollar have been turning to gold, which has been on a record-breaking run following Trump's threats over Greenland and broader geopolitical uncertainty.
The dollar, meanwhile, has been at a four-year low, which can make imports more expensive and increase costs when traveling abroad. On the other hand, it can also boost exports and shrink trade deficits. This week, Trump said the dollar was doing great, prompting speculation that he was deliberately following a policy of weakening it.
Goldman Sachs vice chairman warned on Bloomberg that declining global confidence in the dollar could ultimately create risks for the U.S.
It is true a weaker dollar boosts exports. However, the United States has $39 trillion of debt on its way to $40 trillion plus. And when you have that much debt, I think stability of the currency probably trumps exports.
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