Firing Jerome Powell may harm the dollar, says French Finance Minister

French Finance Minister Eric Lombard said Sunday that President Donald Trump would weaken the dollar and disrupt the United States economy if he removed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell.

“Donald Trump has hurt the credibility of the dollar with his aggressive moves on tariffs, for a long time,” Lombard told La Tribune Dimanche. “If Powell is pushed out, this credibility will be harmed even more, with developments in the bond market.” 

He warned that higher borrowing costs would follow and a “profound disorganization of the country’s economy” would result, forcing Washington to seek talks “sooner or later” to calm tensions.

The remarks landed after Trump renewed a threat that has hovered for years: firing the Fed chair he appointed in 2018. On Thursday, speaking in the Oval Office, the president said, “If I want him out, he’ll be out of there real fast, believe me,” moments after posting online that “Powell’s termination cannot come fast enough!” 

White House officials advise Trump not to fire Powell

Investors watched a fresh spike in market nerves as the comments circulated. Inside the White House, advisers have told Trump that breaking with decades of central‑bank independence could rattle already unstable financial markets, according to people familiar with the discussions. 

They also pointed to unanswered legal questions about whether a president can dismiss a Fed chief without cause. For now, those warnings have tempered action, the people said.

Still, the debate is active. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said Friday that Trump was “studying whether he could fire” Powell. The chair’s four‑year term ends in May 2026.

Lombard’s intervention marked an unusually direct comment on U.S. domestic policy from a French minister. President Emmanuel Macron has clashed with Trump on Ukraine and trade, and has offered French research posts to American scientists whose funding was cut.

Tariffs remain a second flash point. This month, the Trump administration imposed 10 percent duties on some European Union imports. 

Lombard said that level is “a huge increase that isn’t sustainable for the US economy and represents major risks for global trade.” He added that Europe still wants a free‑trade zone with the United States and urged European chief executives to show “patriotism” by working with their governments to protect the region’s interests.

On Thursday, French billionaire Bernard Arnault, whose LVMH group owns Moët & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, and Hennessy, hinted that EU leaders were not pressing hard enough for a tariff accord.

The tension around the Fed adds to a rough month on Wall Street, where investors have wrestled with the tariff wars and fears of slowing growth. Many see the central bank as a stabilizer. Undermining it, Lombard said, would shake confidence in the dollar itself.

The immediate question is whether the president will act on his threats. As Trump put it, “If I want him out,” he can move quickly. Whether markets would stay calm, Lombard suggested, is another matter entirely. Powell has not commented publicly on the latest threats as of yet.

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