Trump told Yellen he considers her a ‘low-interest-rate’ person

Olivier Douliery | Bloomberg | Getty Images

President Donald Trump listens during a meeting with Cabinet members at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Monday, June 12, 2017.

President Donald Trump said he likes low interest rates in a meeting with Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn, according to a Tuesday Wall Street Journal report, citing people familiar with the conversation.

Weeks after taking office, Trump told Yellen he believes she is a “low-interest rate” person like himself, the report said.

The Federal Reserve did not immediately return a CNBC phone call for comment.

At its two-day meeting set to end Wednesday afternoon, the Fed is expected to raise short-term interest rates for the fourth time in two years. The central bank has kept interest rates near historically low levels as the U.S. economy emerged from the Great Recession in the last decade.

During his campaign, Trump criticized Yellen for keeping rates low for political reasons and said he would likely replace her. Yellen’s term ends in February 2018.

Former Goldman Sachs president Cohn sat next to Yellen, across from Trump, during the roughly 15-minute conversation, the Journal said Tuesday.

A White House spokeswoman told CNBC in late April chatter about Cohn being Yellen’s eventual successor was “entirely speculation.”

Trump told the Journal in an interview earlier in April that he was undecided about renominating Yellen and that he does “like her” and “respect her.” He also said, “I do like a low-interest rate policy.”

Read the full story in the Journal here.