President Donald Trump could name a replacement for Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell by Christmas, according to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
“I think there’s a very good chance that the president will make an announcement before Christmas,” Bessent told CNBC on Tuesday morning. “But it’s his prerogative, whether it’s before the Christmas holidays or in the new year.”
Bessent added that he thought “things are moving along very well” in the search process. He said he had one interview with a candidate scheduled for later Tuesday, the final one in the second round of interviews.
Bessent has been helming the interview process since the summer, starting with a list of 11 names that’s been whittled down to five: Fed Governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman; ex-Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, Blackrock investment executive Rick Rieder, and White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett.
Both Hassett and Warsh are viewed as the front-runners to replace Powell so far, given their support to cut borrowing costs. Trump has been waging a scorched-earth campaign against the Fed to lower interest rates since he believes the central bank is keeping a lid on economic growth.
The next Fed meeting is scheduled for Dec. 9 and 10, the final one of the year. Fed officials will be weighing whether to cut borrowing costs a third time this year or sit still.
The Fed is still grappling with shutdown-related fallout, since the Bureau of Labor Statistics has been forced to postpone key data releases detailing November’s inflation and employment statuses until mid-December.
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