White House economic adviser: Investigation of Powell "will not yield any results"

date
17/01/2026
The British "Guardian" reported on the 16th that Kevin Hassett, Director of the White House National Economic Council, said he expected that the Department of Justice's criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chairman Powell would not have substantial results because he believed Powell's previous testimony regarding the renovation project at the Fed's office building was true. Hassett said in an interview with Fox Business News TV that morning that he hoped the Fed would be "more transparent" when testifying to Congress. "In all corners of the government, the Federal Reserve, the White House, all institutions have a responsibility to be transparent to the American people," Hassett said. "If I were Fed Chairman, I would insist on transparency, and I might answer these questions right away." He also said, "But ultimately, I expect - Jay is a good man - I expect this matter to be insignificant, the cost overrun should be related to issues such as asbestos handling, as he said. But I do hope the Fed could have been more transparent from the outset."
Latest
36 m ago
CCTV financial commentary: Structural monetary policy "lowering prices and increasing quantity" precise irrigation of the real economy at the beginning of the new year, the People's Bank of China issued a "big gift package" of monetary and financial policies, using a combination of "lowering prices, increasing quantity, and expanding coverage" to precisely irrigate key areas and weak links of the real economy, supporting a good start and a good first step for the "14th Five-Year Plan". On January 15, a relevant person in charge of the People's Bank of China stated at a press conference of the State Council Information Office that, according to the current economic and financial situation, the People's Bank of China will first introduce two policy measures: lowering interest rates of various structural monetary policy tools and improving structural tools while increasing support. This policy "combination" directly targets the pain points of financing costs, with the one-year interest rate for all types of re-lending lowered from 1.5% to 1.25%, and other term rates adjusted synchronously, continuing the trend of steadily reducing the cost of social financing. By December 2025, the weighted average interest rate for new corporate loans in China had fallen to around 3.1%. This "targeted interest rate cut" will further reduce the cost of bank funds, increase the enthusiasm of banks to lend in key areas, and channel more low-cost financial resources into the real economy. Targeted "increased quantity" support measures help fill the financing gap in key areas and weak links precisely. Among them, the policy increases the amount of re-lending for technological innovation and technological transformation to 1.2 trillion yuan, combines the use of re-lending and rediscount quotas for agricultural and small-scale loans, and increases the quota for agricultural and small loans by 500 billion yuan. This provides sufficient financial support for technology companies to overcome technical bottlenecks, small and medium-sized enterprises to update and iterate equipment, and farmers to expand production, effectively alleviating the financial pressure in these areas. The "expanding coverage" measures further assist in the transformation and optimization of the economic structure by improving structural tools. The policy sets up a separate re-lending item for private enterprises in the total amount of agricultural and small loans, and includes private small and medium-sized enterprises with high levels of research and development investment into the support areas of technological innovation and technological transformation. This adjustment will bring more private forces into the financial support system, enhance the confidence of private small and medium-sized enterprises in development, and cultivate more dynamic market entities for the transformation and upgrading of the economic structure. Additionally, the policy proposes to expand support for carbon emission reduction tools, service consumption, and elderly care rediscounting areas, echoing the current needs of China for green low-carbon transformation, expanding domestic demand, promoting consumption, and strengthening the financial supply in related areas. The unique advantages of structural tools are becoming apparent. Different from a comprehensive interest rate cut, this policy focuses on private small, medium, and micro enterprises, technological innovation, green transformation, and other key areas, reaching the weak links and key areas of the real economy in a precise way, reducing the cost of real financing while guiding financial resources towards high-quality development. Next, a package of monetary and financial policy "combination" along with complementary measures in various specific areas will form a synergy to promote the improvement of financial services for the high-quality development of the real economy, boost market confidence, stimulate the vitality of microeconomic entities, and inject financial momentum into the beginning of the "14th Five-Year Plan".
See all latestmore