Durban, South Africa — The G20 nations stressed Friday that central banks must remain independent, after months of escalating attacks by US President Donald Trump on Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell.
The US leader has repeatedly lashed out at Powell for not lowering interest rates more quickly, calling the central banker a “numbskull” and “moron”.
This week he suggested he could be dismissed for “fraud” over his handling of a renovation project at the Federal Reserve headquarters.
“Central banks are strongly committed to ensuring price stability, consistent with their respective mandates, and will continue to adjust their policies in a data-dependent manner,” the grouping said, in a joint declaration after finance ministers’ meeting in South Africa.
“Central bank independence is crucial to achieving this goal,” said the statement, a rare consensus also signed by the United States.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent did not attend the two-day meeting in the port city of Durban, with Washington instead represented by acting undersecretary for international affairs Michael Kaplan.
The G20 is made up of 19 nations and two regional organizations and its members account for more than 80 percent of the world’s economic output.
The group has scrambled to respond to drastic policy shifts by its richest member, the United States, which has upended global trade rules since Trump’s return to the White House.
“The global economy is facing heightened uncertainty and complex challenges, including ongoing wars and conflicts, geopolitical and trade tensions,” it said.
