The Latest Breaking News from Jerome Powell

An upbeat start to Wall Street's earnings season, combined with dovish signals from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, has unleashed a powerful rally across U.S. regional banks, marking their strongest two-day performance since Donald Trump's 2024 election victory.

The main indexes fell sharply in early trading on rising China tensions, but rebounded thanks to encouraging bank earnings.

Wall Street edged higher Tuesday as strong bank earnings lifted sentiment, even as renewed U.S.-China trade tensions kept investor enthusiasm in check.

US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned Tuesday that risks to employment had risen in recent months, noting there had been a sharp slowdown of job creation in the world's leading economy.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says that a sharp slowdown in hiring poses a growing risk to the U.S. economy

“History also suggests that the full consequences of AI for the labor market might not become apparent until a recession hits.”

December S&P 500 E-Mini futures (ESZ25) are down -1.18%, and December Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures (NQZ25) are down -1.65% this morning as sentiment weakened after China hit back at the U.S. on shipping.

December S&P 500 E-Mini futures (ESZ25) are up +1.38%, and December Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures (NQZ25) are up +1.84% this morning, signaling a rebound from Friday’s sell-off on Wall Street as sentiment improved after U.S. President Donald Trump softened his stance on tariff threats against Beijing.

“There was nothing political about it,” the Fed governor told CNBC. “Just serious economic discussion.”

Following a series of intense interviews, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has reportedly cut President Donald Trump's list of Federal Reserve chair candidates to down to five, from an initial pool of eleven.

The Bank of England has warned that the loss of confidence in the U.S. Federal Reserve's independence or a reversal in AI-driven market optimism could trigger a global selloff.