US President Donald Trump said he would fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell if he doesn’t step aside when his term expires next month, a move critics say would undermine the central bank’s independence.

During his second term, Trump has repeatedly clashed with Powell, urging him to cut rates.

Powell and the rate-setting committee have resisted those calls, and are likely to continue doing so as tariffs and the Iran war push prices up.

Critics fear that Trump is not likely to back off efforts to make the Fed more pliant, prompting calls for autonomy.

“What we care most about is the independence of the Federal Reserve,” the president of Goldman Sachs said at Semafor World Economy.