Stocks fell and the dollar slumped to a three-year low on Monday as investors worried about President Donald Trump's threats to curtail the independence of the U.S. central bank.

The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) slid as low as 97.92, its lowest level since March 2022, early Monday morning. The benchmark dollar index has declined about 5% since early April when Preܫsident Trump shook global financial markets with his unveiling of sweeping tariffs on nearly every country. 

Wall Street on Monday was focused on Trump's relationship with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, whom the president has accused of slow-walking interest rate cuts. Trump on Thursday said the Fed Chair's "termination can't come fast enough." White House economic advisor Kevin♒ Ha𒈔ssett on Friday told reporters the president was looking into whether they could oust Powell, whom Trump first appointed to the position in 2018. 

The fight over the Fed’s independence is just the latest development in Washington to spook investors. Stocks sold off, Treasury yields soared, and the dollar slumped in the weeks after Trump unveiled his "澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:reciprocal tariffs" aimed at nearly every country in the world. Market watchers noted with concern that turmoil in the stock market should have sent investors flocking to traditional safe havens like Treasurys and the dollar. Former Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:recently said 🅰the pattern suggested "investors are beginning to shun dollar-based assets."

Investors have rushed into one safe haven: gold, which has 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:risen nearly 30% so far this yea𝓰r and climbed to 🅰a fresh all-time high of more than $3,440 an ounce on Monday.

Long-term Treasury yields were moderately higher early afternoon Monday. The 10-year Treasury note, which affects interest rates on various consumer and commercial loans, recently yielded 4.39%, off its high of 4.42% earlier in the day but up from 4.33% at the prior session's close.

Trump's fight with Powell could have far-reaching implications for the global economy. "Arguably, the great moderation of inflation was driven by a trend toward central bank independence," wrote Paul Donovan, Chief Economist at UBS Global Wealth Management, on Monday. "While monetary policy is a relatively blunt weapon, it can be wielded to control medium-term inflation. This depends on trust in the central bank. Building that trust takes years. Losing that trust can happen overnight."

The President 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:railed against Powell again on Monday morning, claiming on his social media platform Truth Social that "there is virtually No Inflation" and calling on Powell to cut interest rates "NOW." 

The Federal Reserve's next interest-rate decision will come on May 7. Fed officials have indicated they'll 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:take a cautious approach to rate cuts as they wait to see how tari꧅ffs affect economic growth and inflation.