Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell responded to a pointed letter from the Trump administration on Thursday, offering the central bank's strongest defense to date in attacks over its building renovations.
Why it matters: The letter comes as President Trump denies he will attempt to fire Powell.
President Trump's push to switch the sweetener in Coke to cane sugar could cost thousands of U.S. jobs, an influential corn industry group said.
Why it matters: A can of soda just became a minor political crisis, adding to a White House pile that includes the Jeffrey Epstein controversy, drama at the Federal Reserve, and a near-boiling trade war.
Retail spending rebounded in June after a pullback in late spring, the Commerce Department said on Thursday.
Why it matters: Consumers ramped up spending more than economists anticipated, a sign of resiliency among American shoppers despite concerns that President Trump's tariffs are weighing on the economy.
If President Trump fires Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, it would likely bring a period of short-term market volatility — along with higher long-term borrowing costs, as the Fed would be viewed as more subject to a president's whims.
The big picture: Trump appears to be itching to push out the Fed chief he originally appointed, perhaps by claiming that an over-budget building renovation constitutes legal cause.