Traders were selling ahead of the possibility that Fed Chair Jerome Powell's highly anticipated speech Friday could disappoint investor hopes for a signal that interest rate cuts are coming.

The Fed chair will speak Friday at an annual economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyo. The speech comes as the central bank is under mounting pressure from the White House to lower interest rates.

Three Federal Reserve officials appeared lukewarm on Thursday to the idea of an interest rate cut next month, as investors geared up for U.S. central bank chief Jerome Powell's speech to the annual Jackson Hole conference in Wyoming.

Powell is set to deliver what almost certainly will be his last keynote address at the central bank's annual conclave.

The Justice Department signaled possible plans to investigate Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, with a top official informing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell of the probe and encouraging him to remove her from the board in a letter sent Thursday.

Both Wall Street and the White House will be paying close attention to Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s high-profile speech Friday at the Fed’s annual economic symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Economists have long preferred independent central banks because they can more easily take unpopular steps to fight inflation.

Sarah House, Wells Fargo senior economist, joins 'Closing Bell Overtime' to talk what to expect out of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's Jackson Hole speech, and what Wells Fargo is monitoring in the U.

The president’s calls for Lisa Cook, a Fed governor, to resign are diverting attention from economic issues as top central bankers from around the world gather in Jackson, Wyo.

The U.S. dollar drifted on Thursday as investors fretted about the Federal Reserve's independence after yet another attack from President Donald Trump ahead of remarks from Chair Jerome Powell later this week that could influence the outlook for rates.