Although Donald Trump has repeatedly urged Powell to cut interest rates, the US central bank has taken a wait-and-see attitude, keeping interest rates steady.The Fed’s benchmark interest rate is currently at 4.25%-4.50%, which has remained the same since December after multiple rate cuts late last year.According to AFP, Trump has threatened several times to fire Powell, as he is attempting to do with members of other independent policy bodies in a case currently before the US Supreme Court. Powell said on Thursday that the Fed is keeping a careful eye on the matter but that he does not think any decision will be too costly to the central bank, whose credibility in managing monetary policy is seen as crucial not just to the US economy but also to global markets’ conformity to the Fed’s decisions.Powell was first nominated by Trump in 2017, and was appointed to another four-year term by President Joe Biden in 2022. At a news conference in November, Powell indicated he would not step down if Trump asked him to resign.
In a cease and desist order issued on Tuesday (April 15), the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) found that Google had engaged in practices that restricted competition by requiring at least six Android device makers to give preferential access to Google Search and the Chrome browser since at least July 2020. These conditions were embedded in licensing agreements for the Google Play store, which covers about 80 percent of Android smartphones sold in Japan.The commission also determined that the US technology giant guaranteed five of its business partners – including smartphone makers and telecom operators – rebates in advertising revenue in exchange for placing Google services prominently on home screens and not pre-installing rival apps, reports Nikkei.
