U.S.

Wall Street Steady After Trump Backs Off Powell Firing Threat

by Sinclair Mills

Published On: July 17, 2025

Markets opened calmly

Thursday

after President Donald Trump

walked

back earlier threats to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Ahead of the opening bell:

S&P 500 futures

were flat,
Dow Jones futures

dipped 0.2%,
Nasdaq futures

edged up less than 0.1%.

Trump vs. Powell

Trump has repeatedly criticized Powell for keeping interest rates steady despite low unemployment and a generally healthy economy. His latest complaint targets a

$2.5 billion renovation

of the Federal Reserve’s Washington headquarters, which Trump claims could justify Powell’s removal.

Markets briefly fell Wednesday following reports that Trump was considering firing Powell, but quickly rebounded after the president appeared to soften his stance. Wall Street tends to favor lower interest rates, which boost stock prices, and Trump has been vocal about wanting the Fed to cut rates more aggressively.

Strong Earnings Temper Trade Worries

The early part of earnings season has shown

strong corporate results

, even as companies warn about uncertainty stemming from Trump’s tariff policies.

PepsiCo

shares rose 2% in premarket trading after beating second-quarter estimates. The company reaffirmed earlier guidance, citing weaker full-year profit expectations due to tariffs and slowing consumer spending.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC)

, the world’s top chipmaker and key Nvidia supplier, saw a 3.4% jump in early trading after reporting strong year-over-year gains. Still, TSMC warned of “uncertainties and risks” from ongoing trade tensions.

Some companies, however, didn’t fare as well:

United Airlines

fell 1.6% overnight after its revenue slightly missed expectations and it trimmed full-year profit forecasts.
Ingredion

plunged nearly 6%, and

Archer-Daniels-Midland

dropped 3%, after Trump claimed Coca-Cola would switch to using real cane sugar in the U.S.—a statement the company hasn’t confirmed. Both firms are major suppliers of high fructose corn syrup.

Netflix

is set to report earnings after markets close. Meanwhile, new data on

jobs

and

retail sales

is due Thursday morning.

Global Markets

Europe

:

Germany’s

DAX

rose 0.8%
France’s

CAC 40

gained 0.9%
Britain’s

FTSE 100

added 0.4%

Asia

:

Japan’s

Nikkei 225

climbed 0.6% despite a trade deficit blamed on reduced U.S. exports due to tariffs
Shanghai Composite

gained 0.4%
Australia’s ASX 200

rose 0.9%
South Korea’s Kospi

edged up 0.2%
India’s Sensex

slipped 0.3%
Thailand’s SET

surged 3.3% on strong showings from Airports of Thailand and Delta Electronics
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng

closed down 0.1% after giving up early gains