CHRISTOPHER RUGABER

Economics writer

Rugaber has covered the Federal Reserve and the U.S. economy for the AP for 16 years. He is a two-time finalist for the Gerald Loeb award for business reporting.
The Federal Reserve Board Building is seen as it undergoes renovations, June 10, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)
Trump appointees pushed more marble in Fed building renovation White House now attacks
President Donald Trump has looked to the marble finishes and hefty price tag of the Federal Reserve headquarters to claim grounds to fire Chair Jerome Powell, with whom he has tussled for years over interest rates.
 
Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell listens during a hearing of the House Committee on Financial Services on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, June 24, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Federal Reserve’s Waller says central bank should cut rates at next meeting
A top Federal Reserve official said late Thursday that the central bank should cut its key interest rate later this month, carving out a different view than that of Chair Jerome Powell, who has been harshly criticized by the White House for delaying rate cuts.
 
Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell listens during a Senate Committee on Banking hearing, June 25, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)
Federal Reserve says building renovation complies with law, defends costs
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday said the agency’s renovation of its office complex in Washington complies with plans approved by a local commission, disputing a White House suggestion that they had violated the law by deviating from those plans.
 
Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell listens during a Senate Committee on Banking hearing, June 25, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)
How Trump could use a building renovation to oust Fed Chair Powell
President Donald Trump says he’s found a way to achieve his goal of removing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, accusing him of mismanaging the U.S. central bank’s $2.5 billion renovation project.
 
Shoppers leave Macy's in Boston, Nov. 29, 2019. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, file)
The tariff-driven inflation that economists feared begins to emerge
Inflation rose last month to its highest level since February as President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs push up the cost of a range of goods, including furniture, clothing, and large appliances.
 
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt holds up a note from President Donald Trump to Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell written on a list of central bank rates worldwide, as she speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Monday, June 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
As Trump ramps up attacks on the Federal Reserve, Chair Powell refuses to change course
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is sticking to his position that the central bank will keep its key rate on hold while it waits to see how President Donald Trump’s tariffs effect the economy, defying the steady stream of criticism from the White House, which wants lower borrowing costs.
 
A shopper considers large-screen televisions on display in a Costco warehouse Oct. 3, 2024, in Timnath, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
Gloomy Americans cut back on spending as inflation ticks higher
A key inflation gauge moved higher in May in the latest sign that prices remain stubbornly elevated while Americans cut back on their spending.
 
A now hiring and help wanted sign is posted in Morrisville, Pa., Monday, June 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Fewer Americans sought unemployment benefits last week as layoffs remain low
The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits dropped last week, the Labor Department said Thursday, a sign that companies aren’t cutting many jobs.
 
Morehouse College students line up before the school's commencement ceremonies in Atlanta on May 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)
Unemployment among young college graduates outpaces overall US joblessness rate
Young people graduating from college this spring and summer are facing one of the toughest job markets in more than a decade.
 
Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell listens during a Senate Committee on Banking hearing, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Fed’s Powell repeats warning about tariffs as some GOP senators accuse him of bias
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs will likely push up inflation in the coming months, even as some Republican senators suggested the chair was biased against the duties.
 
Federal Reserve’s Bowman says rate cut should be on table in July
Federal Reserve governor Michelle Bowman on Monday said the central bank should consider cutting its key interest rate as soon as its next meeting in July, underscoring deep divisions among Fed officials as they endure sharp criticism from the White House.
 
Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell speaks during a news conference at the Federal Reserve in Washington, Wednesday, June 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Fed leaves key rate unchanged as it awaits the impact of tariffs and Trump again scolds Powell
The Federal Reserve kept its key rate unchanged Wednesday as it waits for additional information on how tariffs and other potential disruptions will affect the economy this year.
 
A Tariff Free sign to attract vehicle shoppers is at an automobile dealership in Totowa, N.J., on April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)
Americans turn cautious and retail sales slide after a spring rush to beat tariffs
Retail sales fell sharply in May as consumers pulled back after a sharp increase in spending in March to get ahead of President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on nearly all imports.
 
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell departs after speaking at the 75th anniversary conference of the Federal Reserve Board's International Finance Division at the Federal Reserve in Washington, Monday, June 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
The US economy is in a good place, but the Federal Reserve is not
The U.S. economy is mostly in good shape but that isn’t saving Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell from a spell of angst.
 
Customers wait in line for eggs at a Costco store in the Van Nuys section of Los Angeles on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel, File)
Consumer sentiment rises for 1st time this year as inflation remains tame
Consumer sentiment increased in June for the first time in six months, the latest sign that Americans’ views of the economy have improved as inflation has stayed tame and the Trump administration has reached a truce in its trade fight with China.
 
Sales staffs work at an Apple shop in Hanoi, Vietnam Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Hau Dinh, File)
Inflation barely rose last month as cheaper gas and cars offset some costlier imports
U.S. inflation picked up a bit last month as higher prices for groceries and some imported goods were largely offset by cheaper gas, travel services, and rents.
 
The entrance to the Labor Department is seen near the Capitol in Washington, May 7, 2020. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Inflation data threatened by government hiring freeze as tariffs loom
The Labor Department has cut back on the inflation data it collects because of the Trump administration’s government hiring freeze, raising concerns among economists about the quality of the inflation figures just as they are being closely watched for the impact of tariffs.
 
President Donald Trump speaks during an event to announce new tariffs in the Rose Garden at the White House on April 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)
Answering your questions about President Trump’s tariffs
President Donald Trump returned to the White House in January determined to overturn decades of American policy and build a tariff wall around a U.S. economy that used to be pretty much wide open to foreign products.
 
A shopper surveys goods on display in a Costco warehouse Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in Lone Tree, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
US inflation gauge cools with little sign of tariff impact, so far
A key U.S. inflation gauge slowed last month as President Donald Trump’s tariffs have yet to noticeably push up prices, while American incomes jumped.
 
President Donald Trump speaks to reporters in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, May 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
What is the Court of International Trade? And why can it strike down Trump’s tariffs?
A little-known federal court threw a giant monkey wrench into a foundational part of President Donald Trump’s economic agenda by striking down most of the sweeping tariffs he has imposed since taking office.
 
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell walks off following a news conference following the Federal Open Market Committee meeting, Wednesday, May 7, 2025, at the Federal Reserve in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Trump meets with the Federal Reserve chairman he has repeatedly scorned
President Donald Trump met with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and the two discussed the economy but not Powell’s outlook for interest rates, the Fed said.
 
Fed minutes: Uncertainty ‘elevated’ as risks of higher inflation and unemployment rise
Federal Reserve officials agreed earlier this month to hold off on any interest-rate moves while they evaluated the impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on inflation, unemployment, and the broader economy.
 
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell speaks during a news conference following the Federal Open Market Committee meeting, Wednesday, May 7, 2025, at the Federal Reserve in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Powell defends Federal Reserve in Princeton speech amid onslaught of attacks from Trump
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is defending the central bank’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Canada's Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne, centre right, and Governor of the Bank of Canada Tiff Macklem, centre left, pose for a family photo with their colleagues at the G7 Finance Ministers meeting in Banff, Alta., Wednesday, May 21, 2025. (Jeff McIntosh /The Canadian Press via AP)
G7 nations paper over differences on tariffs and Ukraine, agree to address ‘imbalances’
Top finance officials from the world’s seven wealthiest democracies set aside stark differences on U.S. tariffs and agreed to counter global “economic imbalances,” a swipe at China’s trade practices.
 
Ukraine Minister of Finance, Sergii Marchenko, right, and Canada's Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne speak to the media prior to the G7 Finance Ministers meeting in Banff, Alberta, Tuesday, May 20, 2025. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)
Trump’s tariffs will test unity among allies at G7 finance ministers’ summit
Leading financial officials from the world’s richest countries are gathering in a Canadian mountain resort this week for what may prove a contentious meeting in the wake of President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs.
 
Empty shopping carts are collected from the parking lot at Walmart store in Burbank, Calif., on Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
Trump’s massive import taxes haven’t done much economic damage — yet
For months, American consumers and businesses have been hearing that President Trump’s massive tariffs would drive up prices and hurt the U.S. economy.
 
A motorist fills up the tank of a vehicle at a Costco gasoline station late Sunday, Feb. 16, 2025, in Sheridan, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
US consumer sentiment slides to 3-year lows as trade war raises inflation anxiety
U.S. consumer sentiment fell slightly in May for the fifth straight month as Americans increasingly worry that President Donald Trump’s trade war will worsen inflation.
 
Retail sales slow in April after a spending splurge as Americans sought to front-run tariffs
U.S. consumers spent slightly more at retail stores last month after ramping up their shopping in March to get ahead of tariffs.
 
Children's clothing sits stacked on a table for shoppers in a Costco warehouse Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, in Sheridan, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
Inflation cooled again even as some tariffs took effect. But economists don’t expect that to last
Inflation cooled for the third straight month in April even after some of President Donald Trump’s tariffs took effect, though economists and many business owners expect inflation will climb by this summer.
 
The seal of the Federal Reserve Board is seen at the Building in Washington, Saturday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Federal Reserve official sees signs of slowing economy but not ready to cut rates
A top Federal Reserve official said Friday that massive uncertainty created by President Donald Trump’s tariffs has caused some businesses to cut back on hiring and spending, threatening to slow the economy, but he added that it’s not yet clear whether the central bank should cut its key interest ra
 
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