Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers warned that President Donald Trump’s preference for the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate setting would trigger a surge in expectations for inflation, driving up long-term borrowing costs.

Airline sector shows resilience with strong demand and positive earnings, indicating robust consumer and corporate spending despite earlier geopolitical concerns. Netflix reporting after close, remains a streaming leader, but valuation concerns persist; overall, stocks continue mild melt-up with benign retail and jobless data supporting stability.

While almost no one thinks Donald Trump's verbal attacks on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell are a positive development, they have electrified the debate about whether the U.S. president is right that interest rates are too high.

The Federal Reserve is an independent organization, meant to be insulated from politics, and the Supreme Court suggested this year that President Donald Trump would need a reason, or cause, to fire Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics on Tuesday released June inflation data, showing prices increased from the prior month. Hours later, President Trump called on the Fed to lower rates.

The independence of central banks, which allows policymakers to operate free from political meddling, is considered sacrosanct by investors and economists.

San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly reiterated on Thursday it is "reasonable" to expect two interest rate cuts before the end of this year, particularly with the impact of President Donald Trump's tariffs looking more muted than originally expected.