LEADING CENTRAL BANKERS VOICE FULL SOLIDARITY WITH US FED

FRANKFURT, Jan 14 (Bernama-Xinhua) -- A group of major central bank governors said on Tuesday that they fully support the US Federal Reserve (Fed) and its chair Jerome Powell, following an escalation in the Trump administration's confrontation with the Fed, reported Xinhua.

According to a statement published on the European Central Bank's website, the endorsement was signed by 11 major central bank heads and two senior officials from international financial institutions.

Signatories include European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, as well as their counterparts from Australia, Denmark, Canada, South Korea, and Brazil, among others.

"The independence of central banks is a cornerstone of price, financial and economic stability in the interest of the citizens that we serve," the central bankers said, adding that it is "critical to preserve that independence, with full respect for the rule of law and democratic accountability."

As of press time, the number of signatories had expanded from the initial nine to 13.

Powell, who has been Fed chairman since 2018, is set to see his current term expire in May 2026. Over the past weekend, US federal prosecutors reportedly launched a criminal investigation targeting Powell over the Fed's multi-billion-dollar project to renovate its headquarters.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised Powell for not lowering interest rates and has threatened more than once to replace the Fed chair.

On Monday, three former US Federal Reserve chairs and 10 other former top economic officials from the federal government also criticised the criminal probe targeting Powell, calling it "an unprecedented attempt to use prosecutorial actions to undermine the Federal Reserve's independence."

--BERNAMA-XINHUA