Overview
- The Federal Reserve received grand jury subpoenas Friday tied to Jerome Powell’s June Senate testimony on the headquarters renovation, he disclosed in a video Sunday.
- The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington is leading the probe, reportedly approved in November by Jeanine Pirro, while the Justice Department has not detailed charges and the White House says President Trump did not order it.
- Renovation estimates rose from about $1.9 billion to roughly $2.5 billion, which the Fed attributes to higher labor and materials costs and unforeseen hazards such as asbestos and contamination.
- Backlash widened as Republicans Thom Tillis and Lisa Murkowski signaled opposition to confirming Trump’s Fed nominees, and Democrats including Elizabeth Warren and Chuck Schumer condemned the investigation.
- Markets showed a risk-off tilt with a weaker dollar and record gold even as U.S. stocks finished modestly higher, and focus now turns to the Jan. 21 Supreme Court hearing on Lisa Cook’s case and the Jan. 27-28 Fed meeting.