Fed chief Yellen met with Ivanka Trump in July, records show

[WASHINGTON] US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen met briefly in July with presidential adviser and first daughter Ivanka Trump, according to the Fed chief's appointment schedule released Monday.

Ivanka Trump is an unpaid adviser and assistant to her father, a role that is not clearly defined and has drawn criticism.

The previously undisclosed meeting, unusual for a member of the president's family, came as President Donald Trump was considering whether to reappoint or replace the central bank chief, a decision he still has yet to announce.

Ms Yellen's current four-year term as Fed chair expires in February.

According to her July calendar, which the Fed posted on its website, Ivanka Trump had breakfast with Ms Yellen at the Federal Reserve's headquarters July 17. The calendar does not specify the purpose of the meeting or the topics discussed.

A week later, Mr Trump told The Wall Street Journal Ms Yellen was "in the running, absolutely" for another term at the helm of the Fed, surprising some who thought he was likely to replace her.

But in a speech last month Ms Yellen strongly defended banking safeguards put in place after the 2008 financial meltdown, which though simply repeating her previously-stated position, was seen as a warning to the Trump administration that may have caused her to lose favour.

The Fed chair takes weekly meetings with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and also met in July with senior Trump economic advisor Gary Cohn, who was considered a leading candidate to replace Ms Yellen.

But Mr Cohn criticised Mr Trump's response to deadly violence by white supremacists at a rally last month in Virginia and media reports say he is no longer the frontrunner.

AFP