Donald Trump’s second term has begun with a renewed determination to curb the Federal Reserve’s treasured autonomy. Jerome Powell’s response so far: trying to draw a sharp line around monetary policy independence,

The de-escalation drew an immediate thumbs up from Wall Street, as equity index futures jumped by nearly 2% on the resumption of trading on Tuesday evening.

But President Donald Trump’s new declaration that he has “no intention” of firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell should — in theory, anyway — be very good news for bonds. It potentially lifts a huge cloud of uncertainty that has been depressing bond prices for weeks.