Jerome Powell, chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve arrives for a dinner during the Kansas City Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium in Moran, Wyoming, U.S., on Aug. 21, 2025.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Jerome Powell, chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve, will be giving his keynote address at the annual Jackson Hole, Wyoming, gathering of central bankers and economists on Friday stateside.
It’ll be one of the most important speeches by a central bank official — even more so than Powell’s press conferences after the Fed’s rate-setting meetings — because Jackson Hole gives Powell an opportunity to lay out the bank’s longer-term economic frameworks, such as its inflation targets and how it evaluates employment.
For Powell, it’s doubly significant, since the keynote address will probably be his last before his term as Fed chair ends in May 2026.
Even though U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to evict him from his seat prior to that date, the Supreme Court earlier this year indicated that Fed officials have special protection against presidential firings. (It seems that being a central banker in the U.S. might be the only way to protect yourself from layoffs and displacement by artificial intelligence today.)
That said, the Trump administration doesn’t seem to be relenting its pressure on Fed officials. The Department of Justice will investigate Fed Governor Lisa Cook based on a criminal referral by a White House official, according to a letter obtained by CNBC’s Sara Eisen on Thursday.
In a typical year, Jackson Hole sparks excitement mostly among market watchers and finance nerds (i.e. yours truly). This time, the symposium feels more pivotal, almost like a gathering of people quietly struggling for central bank independence.
What you need to know today
And finally…
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (right) and India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar enter a hall for their talks at Zinaida Morozova’s Mansion in Moscow on Aug. 21, 2025.
Alexander Zemlianichenko | Afp | Getty Images
India and Russia agreed Thursday to expand bilateral trade ties, signaling that U.S. tariff pressure on New Delhi over Russian oil purchases is unlikely to derail their partnership.
Among the promised measures is increasing India’s exports of pharmaceuticals, agriculture and textiles to Russia to help reduce the current imbalance, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said at a joint press conference in Moscow.
— Anniek Bao