U.S. President Donald Trump directly accused Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell of endangering the U.S. economy by raising interest rates.
"I'm just saying this: I'm very unhappy with the Fed because Obama had zero interest rates. Every time we do something great, he raises the interest rates," The Wall Street Journal cited Trump as saying.
The U.S. president said Powell "almost looks like he's happy raising interest rates," but declined to elaborate.
Trump acknowledged that the Fed is traditionally independent of political influence, but he still pressed his attacks and appears to view the United States' current economic performance as a competition between himself and President Barack Obama.
Asked if he regrets nominating Powell to his Fed chairmanship, Trump told the WSJ: "Too early to tell, but maybe."
The Fed has raised interest rates three times this year as the U.S. economy has heated up, and it is widely expected to hike again before year-end.
