President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he will announce his choice on Friday for the new chair of the Federal Reserve.
Speaking at the premiere of the film "Melania," a film about First Lady Melania Trump, the president said that the five-month journey to find his choice to replace current Chair Jerome Powell would soon come to an end.
“I will announce the Fed chair tomorrow morning,” Trump said. When asked if he had really made a decision, he replied, “I have, I better had, otherwise I have to get to work soon.”
The process of determining Powell's replacement began in September with 11 candidates including former and current Fed officials, economists, and Wall Street investment professionals. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent screened the qualified candidates, narrowing the list down to five and then four.
The four finalists are believed to be former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, Director of the National Economic Council Kevin Hassett, current Fed Governor Christopher Waller, and BlackRock's head of fixed income, Rick Rieder.
Prediction markets have bet on who will get the job. Hassett had been the leader for a while, then Warsh, and over the last few days, Rieder. However, that changed on Thursday night, with Kalshi now placing Warsh as the favorite with an 80% chance.
A source from the administration told CNBC that Warsh was at the White House on Thursday. However, a White House official denied the speculation.
“President Trump will announce his choice for the Federal Reserve at the right time. All reporting about the nomination process for the Federal Reserve Chair until then is just wasting everyone's time,” said White House spokesperson Kush Desai.
Powell himself declined to answer questions about whether he will remain in office after his term as chair ends in May.