(Reuters) -The Federal Reserve said on Friday it was “grateful” for U.S. President Donald Trump’s encouragement to complete a renovation of two buildings at its headquarters in Washington and that it “looked forward” to seeing the project through to completion.
“We remain committed to continuing to be careful stewards of these resources as we see the project through to completion,” it said in a statement, a day after Trump made a rare visit to the U.S. central bank, where he criticized the cost of the renovation project.
“The Federal Reserve was honored to welcome the President yesterday for a visit to our historic headquarters,” the Fed said.
The visit featured a notably tense public exchange between Trump and Fed Chair Jerome Powell as they sparred over the price tag of the project. White House officials have used the rising cost of the project, which the Fed now estimates at $2.5 billion, as a cudgel in the Trump administration’s ongoing criticism of Powell and his management of the central bank.
Trump said the two men also spoke privately about interest rates, which the president says should be lowered immediately to boost the economy.
The Fed is widely expected to leave its benchmark interest rate in the 4.25%-4.50% range at the conclusion of a two-day policy meeting next week.
(Reporting by Doina Chiacu and Brendan O’Brien; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Paul Simao)
