US futures slip while Asian shares gain as Fed chair Powell faces legal threat

BANGKOK (AP) — U.S. futures slipped but markets in Asia advanced Monday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the Department of Justice had served the central bank with subpoenas.

The threat of a criminal indictment over Powell’s testimony about the Fed’s building renovations is the latest escalation in President Donald Trump’s feud with the Fed. Trump has criticized the Fed’s $2.5 billion renovation of two office buildings as excessive.

Markets appeared to take the news in stride, although gold and other precious metals often used as a hedge in times of uncertainty climbed.

The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.5%. The future for the Nasdaq composite index slipped 0.8%.

In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.4% to 26,337.92, while the Shanghai Composite index also rose 0.4%, 4,135.31.

Tokyo’s markets were closed for a holiday. However, the U.S. dollar rose against the Japanese yen, climbing to 157.96 yen from 157.90 late Friday.

In South Korea, the Kospi added 0.4% to 4,652.10, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.4% at 8,752.90.

Taiwan’s Taiex gained 1%.

On Friday, U.S. stocks hit records following a mixed report on the U.S. job market, one that may delay another cut to interest rates by the Federal Reserve but does not slam the door on it.

Powell’s term as chair ends in May, and Trump administration officials have signaled that he could name a potential replacement this month. Trump has also sought to fire Fed governor Lisa Cook.

In a brief interview with NBC News Sunday, Trump insisted he didn’t know about the investigation into Powell. When asked if the investigation is intended to pressure Powell on rates, Trump said, “No. I wouldn’t even think of doing it that way.”

The S&P 500 climbed 0.6% to 6,966.28, topping its prior all-time high set earlier in the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.5% to 49,504.07, and likewise set a record.

The Nasdaq composite led the market with a 0.8% gain, closing at 23,671.35.

The U.S. Labor Department said employers hired fewer workers during December than economists expected, though the unemployment rate improved and was better than expected. It reinforced how the U.S. job market may be in a “ low-hire, low-fire” state and may hopefully avoid a recession.

On Wall Street, power company Vistra soared 10.5% to help lead the market after signing a 20-year deal to provide electricity from three of its nuclear plants to Meta Platforms. Big Tech companies have been signing a string of such deals to electrify the data centers powering their moves into artificial-intelligence technology.

Oklo jumped 7.9% after saying it also signed a deal with Meta Platforms that will help it secure nuclear fuel and advance its project to build a facility in Pike County, Ohio.

Homebuilders and other companies involved in the housing market were strong in their first trading after President Donald Trump announced a plan to lower mortgage rates. Trump on late Thursday called for the purchase of $200 billion in mortgage bonds, similar to how the Fed in the past has bought bonds backed by mortgages to bring down mortgage rates.

Builders FirstSource, a supplier of building products, jumped 12% for one of the biggest gains in the S&P 500 along with Vistra. Among homebuilders, Lennar rallied 8.9%, D.R. Horton climbed 7.8% and PulteGroup rose 7.3%.

They helped offset a 2.7% drop for General Motors. The auto giant said it will take a $6 billion hit to its results for the last three months of 2025 related to its pullback from electric vehicles. That’s on top of the $1.6 billion in charges GM took in the prior quarter. Fewer tax incentives and easier fuel-emission regulations have been eating into demand for EVs.

In other dealings early Monday, the euro climbed to $1.1657 from $1.1633 late Friday.

U.S. benchmark crude oil added 5 cents to $59.17 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, picked up 7 cents to $63.41 per barrel.

The price of gold rose 1.9% and the price of silver jumped 4.8%.