Uncertainty around the Federal Reserve's future independence, and what this means for inflation and the interest-rate path, is adding extra jitters for U.S. markets. The 30-year Treasury yield briefly topped 5% early Wednesday, nearing a peak it hit in May. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent plans to conduct interviews in search of a candidate to be the next Fed chair on Friday, according to people familiar with the matter. Meantime, investors are waiting to see whether Trump's bid to fire Fed Gov. Lisa Cook will be ruled legitimate, and when Trump ally Stephen Miran will join the Fed's board. And the share of Americans who say they have a good chance of improving their standard of living fell to a record low, according to a new Wall Street Journal-NORC poll.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is planning to start a blitz of interviews on Friday in search of a candidate to be the next chair of the Federal Reserve, according to people familiar with the matter. The interview process would continue next week, the people said, adding that Bessent would talk to candidates either in person or by video conference.

America is becoming a nation of economic pessimists. A new Wall Street Journal-NORC poll finds that the share of people who say they have a good chance of improving their standard of living fell to 25%, a record low in surveys dating to 1987. More than three-quarters said they lack confidence that life for the next generation will be better than their own, the poll found. 

Factory activity contracted for a sixth month in a row, albeit at a slower pace, as demand ticked a little higher. The Institute for Supply Management said its purchasing managers' index of manufacturing activity edged up to 48.7 in August from 48.0 in July.

There were 1,135 billionaires in the U.S. as of 2024—up from 927 in 2020, according to data from Altrata, a wealth intelligence firm. Here's an exclusive, up-close look at the richest people in the U.S. from celebrities like Taylor Swift and Elon Musk to the founder of a roofing supplier in Wisconsin.

While running for Congress last year, Republican Rob Bresnahan—like most Americans—hated the idea of lawmakers making money by trading individual stocks in elected office and said he wanted to ban the practice. Then he won his race. Now a congressman representing northeastern Pennsylvania, Bresnahan is one of the most active traders in Congress and is drawing political heat for some of the transactions.

9:00 a.m.: PIIE hosts discussion with FRB St. Louis President Alberto Musalem
1:30 p.m.: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari participates in Minnesota Women's Economic Roundtable
2 p.m.: U.S. Federal Reserve Beige Book

8:15 a.m.: ADP National Employment Report
8:30 a.m.: Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report - Initial Claims
9:45 a.m.: US Services PMI
10 a.m.: U.S. Senate committee considers nomination of Stephen Miran to the Federal Reserve
11 a.m.: Global Services PMI
12:15 p.m.: Economic Club of New York event with Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams
7 p.m.: Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee speaks at mHUB Industry Disruptor Series event

An interest rate cut by the Fed could trigger demand for municipal bonds. Munis typically have yields lower than comparable Treasurys', a gap offset by the munis' tax exemption. But in the past several months local debt yields have climbed closer to Treasurys', amid a surge in munis issuance unmatched by demand. The Fed cut will likely lower Treasury yields, potentially boosting demand for munis from investors fearful of missing out on unusually fat returns, Columbia Threadneedle's Shannon Rinehart says. "A Fed cut is a catalyst for investors because they start getting FOMO and they want to make sure that they lock in the yields." She hopes yields will fall, but not too much. — Paulo Trevisani

• Global bond markets remained under pressure on Wednesday amid mounting concern over rising government debt loads and deficits that also triggered falls across global stock markets in Tuesday’s session.
• The European Commission will push ahead with a long-awaited trade agreement with several South American countries on Wednesday, a spokesperson said, as officials in Brussels race to secure trade deals while tensions with the U.S. mount.
• Yields on long-dated U.K., German and French government bonds rose to multi-year highs as investors weighed the impact of rising debt levels and political instability.
• Turkish inflation continued to ease as the third quarter progressed, clearing the way for the country’s central bank to keep trimming interest rates despite still-hot growth in the economy.
• Australia’s second-quarter economic growth was better than expected but remained sluggish overall as investment weakened.
• A private gauge of China’s services sector showed activity grew at the fastest pace in more than a year in August, supported by improved demand at home and abroad.
• Russia and China advanced plans for a long-delayed natural-gas pipeline to funnel Russian fuel to the Chinese but left core terms unresolved, a sign of Beijing’s growing leverage in its relationship with Moscow.
• Ocean shipping rates from China to the U.S. West Coast have fallen 68% from their June high, a sign this year’s peak shipping season was earlier and shorter than usual.

WSJ Pro Central Banking brings you central banking news, analysis and insights from WSJ’s global team of reporters and editors. This newsletter was compiled by markets reporter Vicky Ge Huang in New York. Send your tips, suggestions and feedback to vicky.huang@wsj.com.