Federal Reserve

Mark Zuckerberg, Lauren Sanchez, Jeff Bezos, Sundar Pichai and Elon Musk, attend the presidential inauguration of President Donald Trump on Monday, January 20, 2025. File Pool Photo by Julia Demaree Nikhinson/UPI | License Photo

Nov. 3 (UPI) — The United States’ 10 richest billionaires saw their wealth grow last year by nearly $700 billion, according to a new report published Monday by Oxfam, which warns the Trump administration is worsening U.S. inequality.

The report states that in the past year, the wealth of U.S. billionaires grew by $698 billion.

Oxfam, the British-founded confederation of nearly two dozen non-governmental organizations, citing Federal Reserve data, found that between 1989 and 2022, a household in the top 0.1% gained $39.5 million, while a household in the top 1% gained about $8.3 million. Meanwhile, a bottom 20% household saw its wealth only grow by $8,465.

This equals to the poorest household in the top 1% having gained 987 times more wealth than the richest household in the bottom 20%, according to the report.

It continues by stating that while the wealth of working- and middle-class families have barely grown in more than three decades, America’s richest have seen their purses overflow.

As evidence, Oxfam said the share of national income going to the top 1% doubled from 1980 to 2022, while the share going to the bottom 50% decreased by one-third.

It also pointed to the top 1% owning half of the entire stock market, while the bottom half of Americans only hold 1.1%.

“The data confirms what people across our nation already know instinctively: the new American oligarchy is here,” Abby Maxman, Oxfam America’s president and CEO, said in a statement accompanying the publication of the report.

“Billionaires and mega-corporations are booming while working families struggle to afford housing, healthcare and groceries.”

The report warns that the Trump administration is taking actions that threaten to worsen inequality in the United States.

According to Oxfam, the Trump administration, backed by a Republican-controlled Congress, “has moved with staggering speed and scale to carry out a relentless attack on working class families, and use the power of the office to enrich the wealthy and well-connected.”

Maxman said the Trump administration and congressional Republicans “risk turbocharging” this inequality, while adding that what they are doing isn’t new, but what is different “is how much undemocratic power they’ve now amassed.”

Chair of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell speaks during a press conference following a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting at the Federal Reserve in Washington, D.C., on July 30. The Federal Reserve will meet Wednesday to decide whether to issue a second interest rate cut since September. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo

Oct. 27 (UPI) — The Federal Reserve will meet Wednesday, as the U.S. government shutdown enters its fifth week, to decide whether to cut interest rates for a second time since September.

Last week, the Labor Department released its Consumer Price Index, showing inflation rose at a rate of 3% last month. While inflation remains above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target, many economists expect a rate cut this week.

“Concerns about tariffs driving prices higher are still not showing up in most categories,” Scott Helfstein, Global X’s head of investment strategy, told CBS News on Friday. “Nothing in the inflation print should stop the Fed from cutting rates next week. Yes, prices are higher, but not enough to keep them from helping the economy.”

While some economic data has not been released amid the government shutdown, forcing the Federal Reserve to make its decision without some key information, a quarter-point cut to benchmark federal funds this week would lower the target to somewhere between 3.75% and 4%.

“This time around, there are warning signs all around the economy, from rising unemployment to seven straight months of contraction in manufacturing due to tariffs,” Ryan Young, senior economist at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, told Fox Business. “That is what is pushing Fed officials towards cutting rates. But that stimulus comes with a tradeoff: it risks higher inflation. They’re taking a chance, and it might not pay off.”

Last month, Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell announced a 0.25% rate cut, the first of President Donald Trump‘s second term and the first since the United States imposed wide-ranging tariffs. The Federal Reserve works to control inflation, while maximizing job growth.

U.S. markets, which closed higher Monday, are also expecting another rate cut this week, along with a third in December.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 are currently sitting at record highs. On Friday, the Dow closed for the first time above 47,000, buoyed by the expectation of another rate cut this week, as well as big tech earnings reports and a possible China trade deal.

1 of 2 | A portrait of President Donald Trump is draped on the front of the Department of Labor Headquarters in Washington, D.C., on August 30. On Friday, the department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics is expected to release the Consumer Price Index report. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo

Oct. 24 (UPI) — The Bureau of Labor Statistics is set to release the Consumer Price Index report Friday, two weeks after calling back economists and other employees to prepare the document despite the government shutdown.

The CPI report was originally scheduled to be published Oct. 15, but the shutdown delayed work. However, federal law requires the Social Security Administration to make its cost-of-living adjustment annually based on inflation from the third quarter.

That adjustment, known as COLA, must be published by Nov. 1, though it was originally expected to be released in mid-October.

The BLS called back economists and IT specialists to prepare the report the second week of October.

Economic experts expect Friday’s report will show that inflation has risen to its highest level since May 2024 — 3.1%, ABC News reported. The Federal Reserve‘s target annual inflation rate is 2%.

NBC News reported the report is expected to be released at 8:30 a.m. EDT.

Thursday marked the 23rd day the government was closed for business pending the passage of a stopgap funding bill, making it the second-longest federal shutdown in U.S. history. Friday is Day 24.

1 of 2 | On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook (pictured Feb. 2022 on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.) can remain on the job on an interim basis into 2026. The high court agreed to hear oral arguments in January with a likely ruling before June’s end. File Photo by Ken Cedeno/UPI | License Photo

Oct. 1 (UPI) — Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook will be permitted to stay on the central bank board at least through next year after legal questions over her termination by U.S. President Donald Trump.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Cook can remain on the job on an interim basis into 2026, and agreed to hear oral arguments in January with a likely ruling before June’s end.

The nation’s high court, however, did not explain the basis of its decision in the brief ruling.

In August, Trump fired Cook over his claims of mortgage fraud which Cook has since denied.

No justice dissented in the rare break from a majority that typically has ruled on the side of the Trump administration over other legal issues.

Trump requested Supreme Court intervention in mid-September, but Cook fought back arguing that he does not have the authority.

U.S. presidents under the Federal Reserve Act are forbidden from arbitrarily removing a federal reserve governor unless evidence of wrongdoing presented a “for cause” reason to do so.

Cook sued Trump over the attempted ousting, citing constitutional protections guaranteed to her as an official of the independent federal board.

On Wednesday, a legal analyst said the court’s ruling on Cook means justices are saying: “we’re not going to act immediately.”

“It wouldn’t end the fight,” MSNBC legal commentator Lisa Rubin commented on a news program on January’s looming Supreme Court hearing on Cook.

According to Rubin, the Fed’s Cook could “continue to fight on the merits weather or not (Trump) is legally entitled to fire her for the long-term.”

Sept. 26 (UPI) — Core inflation stayed about the same in August, the Federal Reserve said, and personal consumption expenditures had a 0.3% gain for the month.

The personal consumption expenditures price index rise made the annual headline inflation rate 2.7%, which is the inflation over last year, the Commerce Department reported.

The core inflation rate is at 2.9%. It rose 0.2% for the month.

Meanwhile, consumer sentiment fell to 55.1, the University of Michigan said in a survey released Friday. The report was the seventh-lowest on record since 1952.

The pessimism stems from fears of higher inflation, which could get worse. On Thursday, President Donald Trump announced new tariffs on trucks, cabinets and pharmaceuticals.

Americans are now also becoming nervous about the labor market.

“Consumers continue to express frustration over the persistence of high prices, with 44% spontaneously mentioning that high prices are eroding their personal finances, the highest reading in a year,” Joanne Hsu, the Michigan survey’s director, said in a release.

“Interviews this month highlight the fact that consumers feel pressure both from the prospect of higher inflation as well as the risk of weaker labor markets,” she said.

Consumer spending is still going strong. Personal consumption expenditures climbed 0.6% in August from the previous month, the Commerce Department said Friday.

After adjusting for inflation, spending rose 0.4% last month. The personal saving rate, which is personal saving as a percentage of disposable personal income, was 4.6%.

“Recent data show consumers resumed spending over the summer, especially those with higher incomes. And why wouldn’t they? Unemployment is still low, nominal wages are still increasing and asset valuations are near all-time highs,” CNN reported Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin said Friday at an event in Washington, D.C.

Stock market futures rose after the report, while Treasury yields dipped, CNBC reported.

“Net, net, consumers literally hit it out of the park with very strong gains in spending not just for August, but June and July as well,” Chris Rupkey, chief economist at Fwdbonds, told CNBC.

“Summer was the time for consumer revenge spending after hunkering down in retreat from the shops and malls during the uncertainty and fear produced by the White House tariff rollout in April and May.”

Sept. 19 (UPI) — The U.S. Senate confirmed 48 appointees of President Donald Trump, almost entirely made up of ambassador and sub-cabinet positions.

The lone Senate vote unfolded 51-47 mostly along party lines, after a rule change earlier in the month changed the confirmation process.

Earlier this month, Republican lawmakers passed changes allowing nominees to be confirmed through the Senate in a one group rather than individually.

The term is referred to as “en bloc” and only applies to lower roles like ambassadors, not judges or cabinet positions.

Former Trump 2020 presidential campaign advisor Kimberly Guilfoyle, and Callista Gingrich, the wife of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, were among the most notable nominees confirmed.

Guilfoyle is the U.S. ambassador to Greece, while Gingrich was confirmed as the American ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

Senate Democrats had pushed back against the group confirmation vote. Their Republican colleagues continually accused them of holding up or obstructing the process, with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., calling the lead-up “a broken process” and “an embarrassment.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., referred to the result as “a sad, regrettable day for the Senate.”

The group confirmation comes after Senate Republicans earlier this week confirmed White House economic adviser Stephen Miran to join the Federal Reserve Board.

Mrian’s confirmation comes amid vocal concerns about his independence as he will serve in both capacities.

Sept. 18 (UPI) — President Donald Trump has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow him to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook.

Trump has cited a fraud allegation against Cook for his reasoning for firing her, but Cook has fought back, arguing that he doesn’t have the authority.

A federal appeals court on Monday rejected Trump’s attempt to fire Cook.

The three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a 2-1 emergency ruling Monday, ahead of the central bank’s start of monetary policy meetings on Tuesday.

The Fed on Wednesday announced a 0.25% rate cut in the wake of Trump’s demands to do so.

The administration waited for the Fed’s meeting to conclude before going to the high court. It has often sided with Trump on emergency issues.

The Fed traditionally is an independent institution that doesn’t follow White House orders.

If the court agrees with Trump, it would be the first time a Fed governor was fired by a president in the central bank’s 111-year history.

Trump moved to fire Cook late last month on allegations of mortgage fraud, prompting Democrats to accuse the president of conducting a power grab.

Cook challenged her removal in court, and won reinstatement. The district found that her firing likely violated the so-called for-cause provision of the Federal Reserve Act and the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause.

Twice since Aug. 15, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte, a Powell critic, sent criminal referrals for Cook to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, accusing Cook of mortgage fraud, alleging she listed properties she owns inconsistently on different forms. The allegations go back to before she was on the board. No charges have been filed.

Trump points to the mortgage fraud allegations as cause for her removal.

Democrats have backed Cook in the fight to keep her seat. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has been among the most vocal and has described Trump’s attempt to remove Cook an “illegal authoritarian power grab.”

“The courts keep rejecting Donald Trump’s illegal attempt to take over the Fed so he can scapegoat away his failure to lower costs for American families,” Warren said in a statement following the ruling.

“If the courts — including the Supreme Court — continue to uphold the law, Lisa Cook will keep her seat as a Fed governor.”

Sept. 17 (UPI) — The Federal Reserve on Wednesday is expected to announce fresh rate cuts in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump‘s demands to do so amid ongoing tariff worries and its impact on the American economy.

The central bank has not lowered interest rates since December and the Federal Open Market Committee is widely expected to lower rates by a quarter percent at its next meeting around 2 p.m EDT. It comes in an ongoing feud with White House that’s infuriated the president as the bank has been targeted by the Trump administration as it seeks to consolidate greater federal control under the executive branch.

On Monday, Trump’s newly appointed member to the Federal Reserve Stephen Miran was confirmed by the GOP-controlled Senate in a 48-47 vote.

It’s been suggested that Miran will dissent from the anticipated Fed decision as the administration seeks a higher rate reduction.

The Fed opted to take a “wait and see” approach on rates as the economy shifted under the aggressive economic and tariff policies implemented by Trump.

Trump for months has been vocally critical of Fed Char Jerome Powell and the independent board in his demands to lower interest rates as the president has recently attempted to illegally remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook from her role.

Powell did not give clear indications of the FOMC’s plan for Wednesday in a speech at the end of August to the annual Economic Policy Symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

On Monday, Trump said in a social media post in all caps the FOMC “must cut interest rates, now, and bigger than (Powell) had in mind.”

“In terms of the Fed’s dual-mandate goals, the labor market remains near maximum employment, and inflation, though still somewhat elevated, has come down a great deal from its post-pandemic highs,” Powell said in Wyoming.

“At the same time, the balance of risks appears to be shifting,” he said on August 22.

But a Goldman Sachs economist said Tuesday the “key question” for the September FOMC meeting was whether it will “signal that this is likely the first in a series of conservative cuts.”

“We expect the statement to acknowledge the softening in the labor market but do not expect a change to the policy guidance or a nod to an October cut. However, Chair Powell might hint softly in that direction in his press conference,” David Mericle wrote to CNBC in a note.

Meanwhile, a separate economist suggests that “such an emergency-sized move” that Trump envisions “is not justified by the current data.”

“Any decision to cut by 50 basis points at this stage would appear to be driven more by political pressure than economic necessity,” Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, told CNN.