'Serious danger' if Trump controls US monetary policy: ECB chief

PARIS - European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde said Monday that it would be very dangerous for the global economy if US President Donald Trump took control of US monetary policy.

Trump is seeking to remove Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook in a move that critics say aims to fill the central bank with officials who will support his calls for lower interest rates.

Lagarde told France's Radio Classique that it would "very difficult" for Trump "to completely swing the majority" of the Fed's policymaking body in his favour.

But, she said, "if he were to succeed, it would be a very serious danger for the US economy and for the world economy."

She noted that the central bank's policies affect price stability and aims to ensure "optimal" employment.

"If it depended on the diktats of one person or another... the balance of the US economy, and consequently the effects it would have on the entire world, would be very worrying," Lagarde said.