The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition that U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he intends to announce his pick to replace Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell next week, as speculation intensifies over who will lead the U.S. central bank after Mr. Powell steps aside from the job in May. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe quotes Mr. Trump saying, "We're going to be announcing the head of the Fed ... and it'll be a person that will, I think, do a good job." He reiterated his frequent call for sharply lower interest rates. The Fed, which cut rates three times in 2025, left its benchmark interest rate unchanged in the 3.5- to 3.75-per-cent range after the end of a two-day policy meeting Wednesday. Mr. Trump says the rate should be two to three percentage points lower, a level historically consistent with a stalled or faltering economy. The economy grew at a 4.4-per-cent annualized rate in the third quarter, according to Commerce Department data. In recent months Mr. Trump has tried to fire a Fed governor and has opened a criminal investigation into Mr. Powell. Rick Rieder, chief investment officer of BlackRock's global fixed income business, recently became the odds-on favourite to be Mr. Trump's nominee.