SAN FRANCISCO/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell spends more time with U.S. lawmakers, White House advisers, and bankers than did his predecessor Janet Yellen, who tended to favor meetings with professors, the Treasury secretary and community advocates.
That is the rough picture that emerges from calendars detailing Powell’s first four months on the job, the latest of which was published on the U.S. central bank’s website on Friday.
The schedules do not indicate who sought each meeting or what was discussed, but they do suggest who has the Fed chair’s ear and offer some hints about his priorities.
The Fed has been assessing the strength of the economy and the risks of inflation as it measures whether to further raise interest rates this year amid concerns that global trade tensions could take a toll on growth. The Trump administration and Congress have cut taxes and raised spending in an effort to boost the economy, but Trump on Friday imposed tariffs on China that spurred China to retaliate in kind.
In the four months through May, Powell had 117 meetings or calls, usually one-on-ones, with non-Fed staff that were not part of his regular duties like attending Group of Seven meetings or regulatory panels. Yellen had 96 such meetings during her first four months, according to a review of the schedules.
Of Powell’s meetings, 27 were with members of Congress, split almost equally between Republicans and Democrats. In contrast, in her first four months on the job, Yellen met with seven lawmakers, six of whom were Democrats.
