Powell’s Fed is backed into a bit of a corner. Its dual mandate is low unemployment and inflation, two often competing goals. Raising interest rates can slow inflation but increase job losses, while cutting interest rates can increase hiring but risk faster inflation.

Asian equities and U.S. stock futures slid on Monday as anxiety over tariffs and criticism of the Federal Reserve by President Donald Trump shook investor confidence, pushing the dollar sharply lower and catapulting safe-haven gold to a record high.