Jerome Powell, chairman of the US Federal Reserve, during a news conference following a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026.
Kent Nishimura | Bloomberg | Getty Images
As expected, the U.S. Federal Reserve left its key interest rate steady in a range between 3.5%-3.75%.
But what investors were really keeping their eyes peeled for were signs of political fingerprints on the independent central bank.
On his attendance of the legal case against Fed Governor Lisa Cook — which will decide if U.S. President Donald Trump can fire her — Chair Jerome Powell said, “That case is perhaps the most important legal case in the Fed’s 113-year history. … it might be hard to explain why I didn’t attend.”
Powell also left some advice to the next Fed chair. “Don’t get pulled into elected politics,” Powell said. “Don’t do it.”
The political sphere is indeed a tricky one to navigate. U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer is currently visiting China — the first trip to Beijing by a British leader in eight years — in what appears to be an attempt to mend ties with the world’s second-largest economy.
There already appears to be some payoff: China and Britain will deepen their cooperation in key sectors, according to a statement released by Chinese state media Thursday.
Earnings also dominated the news. Meta Platforms, Microsoft and Tesla reported results after markets closed. Even though all beat expectations for earnings per share and revenue, investors were selective with their rewards: shares of Meta and Tesla rose, while those of Microsoft fell.
On Wednesday, the S&P 500 touched the 7,000 level for the first time but closed below that threshold. The U.S. dollar strengthened after Treasury Secretary denied reports that the country was intervening in the currency market.
Over in Europe, Deutsche Bank on Thursday announced record profits during the last quarter of 2025, while Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche’s projected “high single digit” growth in 2026 for its core earnings per share.
Meanwhile, gold prices surged past $5,500 to hit another record high — but one analyst thinks the precious metals markets is “broken.” With Apple next in line to report earnings, investors have plenty, still, to monitor.
— CNBC’s Alex Harring contributed to this report.
