Kevin Warsh set up for failure with Powell staying on and markets expecting rate hike

Kevin Warsh, who is set to become the next chairman of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, is facing a big challenge this year as Chairman Jerome Powell announced he will remain on the Fed’s board and expectations for an interest rate cut fizzle out.

Warsh, 56, is President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the central bank and had his nomination advanced through committee last week. Warsh is expected to be confirmed before the Fed’s next meeting in June, but he is now facing a difficult macroeconomic landscape that has only become more tricky with Powell’s decision to remain on the board.

The problem facing Warsh is that Trump wants lower interest rates, but both the higher inflation environment and Powell’s remaining on the board are making that far less likely.

“It definitely makes it a complicated dynamic on the Fed,” Stephen Kates, a financial analyst at Bankrate, told the Washington