---
title: "Dollar surges as Trump backs down from threat to fire Fed's Powell"
description: "The U.S. dollar surged against major currencies after President Trump backed down from threats to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Trump's comments alleviated concerns about the Fed's indepen"
type: "news"
locale: "en"
url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/237061957.md"
published_at: "2025-04-23T00:42:58.000Z"
---

# Dollar surges as Trump backs down from threat to fire Fed's Powell

> The U.S. dollar surged against major currencies after President Trump backed down from threats to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Trump's comments alleviated concerns about the Fed's independence, leading to a 0.75% rise against the yen and a 0.7% increase against the Swiss franc. The euro fell 0.49% against the dollar. Additionally, optimism about a potential U.S.-China trade deal contributed to the dollar's strength, as Trump suggested tariffs could be significantly reduced. Bitcoin also saw a rise, breaking above $90,000 for the first time since March.

By Ankur Banerjee

SINGAPORE, April 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar jumped broadly against major currencies on Wednesday as investors heaved a sigh of relief after President Donald Trump backed away from threats of firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell following his recent attacks.

The markets this week have been grappling with the notion that the Fed’s independence could be under threat after an Easter holiday weekend featuring repeated attacks by Trump on Powell for not cutting rates since the president resumed office in January.

But late on Tuesday Trump appeared to back down.

“I have no intention of firing him,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday. “I would like to see him be a little more active in terms of his idea to lower interest rates.”

That left the dollar soaring on Wednesday in Asian hours, rising 0.75% against the yen to 142.68 and 0.7% against the Swiss franc (CHF=EBS) to 0.8249. The euro (EUR=EBS) was 0.49% lower at $1.1363.

The dollar had been trading near multi-year lows versus the euro and the Swiss franc on Tuesday, while the yen hit a seven month high as investors dumped U.S. assets, worried by trade tensions and Trump’s attacks on the Fed.

Also aiding sentiment on Wednesday were comments from Trump and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent that suggested that there could be a de-escalation in U.S.-China trade tensions and any trade deal with China could “substantially” cut tariffs.

“Trump’s apparent U-turn must come as a relief … which has helped support the U.S. dollar on bets he (Powell) won’t be replaced with someone more dovish,” said Matt Simpson, senior market analyst at City Index.

“But trade is the bigger story here - as how tariffs play out will dictate where the U.S. economy, and therefore U.S. interest rates, are headed.”

Bessent said neither side sees the status quo as sustainable, adding that the Trump administration’s goal was not to decouple the world’s two largest economies, according to a person who heard his presentation to investors at a JP Morgan conference.

Meanwhile, Trump expressed optimism that a trade deal with China could “substantially” cut tariffs. He said a deal would lower tariffs on Chinese goods, suggesting that a final deal will not “be anywhere near” current tariff rates. But he added that “it won’t be zero”.

Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone, said Trump’s stance on Powell should go some way to allying fears of a major policy mistake in pursuing the removal of the Fed chair.

“Markets become ever more conditioned to the President shooting from the hip and then reversing the stance like it was never a big issue.”

In other currencies, sterling (GBP=D3) fell 0.39% to $1.3281. The Australian dollar (AUD=D3) rose 0.3% to $0.6385, while the New Zealand dollar (NZD=D3) was 0.11% higher at $0.597.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin (BTC=) rose 2.7% to $93,671.97, breaking above $90,000 for the first time since March.

## Related News & Research

| Title | Description | URL |
|-------|-------------|-----|
| 币价大跌不用慌？特朗普家族加密货币平台海湖庄园办大会，华尔街态度转向 | 本周三的海湖庄园活动期间，昔日怀疑加密货币的高盛 CEO 苏德巍透露，他本人持有数量非常有限的比特币。曾称比特币是干扰的富兰克林邓普顿 CEO 称，设想加密货币公司与传统金融机构能携手合作。特朗普的长子称去年其家族推出的稳定币将保护美元霸权 | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276380974.md) |
| 高瓴继续重仓中概股，HHLR 四季度增持阿里巴巴、拼多多，减持网易、百度 | 高瓴 HHLR Advisors Ltd.在四季度增持了阿里巴巴、拼多多、iShares 比特币和台积电，同时减持了网易、Bright Schol、富途控股、百度、满帮和 Webull 等。该公司重仓拼多多、阿里巴巴和富途控股。市场有风险， | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276176972.md) |
| 现场之国娱乐｜8-K：2025 财年营收 252 亿美元超过预期 |  | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276381205.md) |
| 在符文网络活动增加的背景下，C2 区块链将其 DOG（比特币）库存扩大至 6.807 亿枚代币 | C2 Blockchain Inc. 已将其 DOG（比特币）持有量增加至 6.807 亿个代币，反映出 1% 的增长。该公司强调其数字资产财库战略，专注于对比特币原生资产的严格评估。最近的分析显示，Runes 协议交易占比特币网络活动的  | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276444099.md) |
| 特朗普支持的 American Bitcoin 在精英企业加密货币圈中获得一席之地 | 美国比特币公司（American Bitcoin Corp）由埃里克·特朗普（Eric Trump）支持，已积累了 6,039 个比特币，使其在全球企业比特币国库中排名前 20。尽管通过挖矿和购买迅速积累了比特币，该公司的股票自纳斯达克上市 | [Link](https://longbridge.com/en/news/276360652.md) |

---

> **Disclaimer**: This article is for reference only and does not constitute any investment advice.