U.S. President Donald Trump fully supports the independence of the Federal Reserve and isn’t trying to interfere in the foreign-exchange market, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters in Buenos Aires.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Group of 20 nations summit, Mnuchin tried to assuage investor concerns that a currency war was looming. In a series of tweets on Friday, Trump lashed out at China and the European Union for their weak currencies and said a stronger dollar and rising U.S. interest rates are undermining America’s “competitive edge.”
Trump is a real-estate businessman and, as such, closely follows interest rates, Mnuchin told reporters. His comments weren’t intended to jeopardize the Fed’s independence, the secretary added.
While most analysts said Trump’s comments wouldn’t influence the Fed, some raised concerns that any rate decision could now be seen by investors in a political context.
