Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell indicated Tuesday that the central bank will not cut its interest rate target in July, a stance that puts him in conflict with members of the Fed’s board of governors, as well as with President Donald Trump. 

Powell said in prepared remarks for testimony before Congress that the threat of higher inflation from Trump’s tariffs made it necessary to hold rates steady for the time being. 

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“For the time being, we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the likely course of the economy before considering any adjustments to our policy stance,” the remarks read. 

Powell acknowledged the argument advanced by some economists that the upward pressure on prices from tariffs could prove short-lived, and thus should not lead to a delay in monetary easing. But he also said that it is “possible that the inflationary effects could instead be more persistent.”

Powell is under mounting pressure from both within and outside the Fed to embrace rate cuts. 

Trump added to his monthslong criticism of Powell with a social media post in the middle of the night excoriating him for not cutting rates and expressing hope that Congress “really works this very dumb, hardheaded person, over. We will be paying for his incompetence for many years to come.” Powell was scheduled to testify before the House Financial Services Committee. 

At the Fed, two members of the Board of Governors have expressed support for a cut in the Fed’s interest rate target at the next monetary policy meeting in July: Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman. 

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Bowman said this week that, if inflation remains low, she would back a rate cut in July to ensure that the rate target is “closer to its neutral setting and to sustain a healthy labor market.”Inflation stood very close to the Fed’s 2% target in the most recent reading. Meanwhile, unemployment has stayed relatively low, although claims for unemployment benefits have crept up in recent weeks.