Jerome Powell's Stanford speech misses comments on US economy, monetary policy as Trump prepares to name new Fed chief

US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Monday avoided making comments on the current economic conditions of the United States or the Fed's monetary policy.

Jerome Powell was speaking at an event at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, delivering opening remarks at the George P Shultz Memorial Lecture Series.

“Just to be clear, I will not address current economic conditions or monetary policy,” he said.

Powell's comments come ahead of the Fed's policy meeting later this month, where experts expect further rate cuts. In October, the Fed lowered the federal funds rate by 0.25%, setting the target range at 3.75–4.00%. It signalled the possibility of further rate cuts but cautioned that a December reduction was far from certain.

The Fed Chair went on to praise George Shultz, former US Secretary of State.

“I am deeply honoured to have been asked to speak here today about the remarkable legacy of George Shultz,” he said.

“As one of the most successful policymakers of his era, George brought the intellectual rigor of an academic to the practical, constrained, messy work of policymaking. Through four cabinet appointments, he dealt with many of the great issues of his day, with remarkable success.”

The Fed Chair, reflecting on lessons from the 1960s, said that the structure of the economy is always changing and “our understanding of it is highly uncertain”.

While Powell's speech came after the markets closed, investors and analysts will be closely watching stock movements on Tuesday.

Who will be Powell's successor at Fed? Donald Trump answers

A day earlier, US President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he had decided on his choice for the next Federal Reserve chair.

“I know who I am going to pick, yeah,” Trump said on Sunday, on his way back to Washington, without naming his choice. “We’ll be announcing it.”

The US president has frequently bashed current Fed Chair Jerome Powell for failing to lower rates swiftly and made it clear that the new central bank chief should deliver interest rate cuts.

In a CNBC interview, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that Trump is likely to announce the name of the next Fed Chair before Christmas.

“I think there’s a very good chance that the president will make an announcement before Christmas,” he said.

“But it’s his prerogative, whether it’s before the Christmas holidays or in the new year. But I think things are moving along very well,” Bessent told the news channel.

While Trump has not explicitly named who he is going to pick as his nominee, Bloomberg reported, citing people in the know, that White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, Trump’s chief economic adviser, is seen as the likely choice to succeed Powell.