This is CNBC's Morning Squawk newsletter. Subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox. Happy Friday. President Donald Trump has made his decision on who he'll nominate to be the Federal Reserve's next chair, and it turns out that it was one of the "Kevins" after all. Stock futures are lower this morning. The S&P 500 is coming off a second day of minor losses. Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:
1. Trump makes his pick
Kevin Warsh, former governor of the US Federal Reserve, speaks with CNBC on July 17, 2025. CNBC
Trump will nominate former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh to be the U.S. central bank's next chairman, he announced this morning. "I have known Kevin for a long period of time, and have no doubt that he will go down as one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen, maybe the best," Trump said on social media. As CNBC's Jeff Cox notes, the pick isn't likely to rattle markets given Warsh's central bank pedigree, as well as a belief on Wall Street that he will remain politically independent. But Warsh will need Senate confirmation — a process that could be difficult given Republican Sen. Thom Tillis' pledge to block any Fed nominees until the criminal investigation into current Fed Chair Jerome Powell concludes. An administration source told CNBC that Warsh was at the White House yesterday, as speculation narrowed in on the former Fed governor as Trump's pick. The other finalists for the role were believed to be National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, current Fed Governor Christopher Waller and BlackRock's Rick Rieder.
2. Software virus
Signage at the Microsoft campus in Mountain View, California, Jan. 26, 2026. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
3. Not so fast
The U.S. Capitol building stands as Congress works to resolve a dispute over immigration enforcement and avert a looming partial government shutdown, in Washington, D.C., U.S., Jan. 29, 2026. Kent Nishimura | Reuters
Trump endorsed a Senate deal yesterday that would fund most of the government through the end of the fiscal year. As CNBC's Garrett Downs reports, his support should help get the funding package across the finish line and avoid a partial government shutdown set to start early Saturday morning. The revised deal would approve funding for several departments, including the Departments of Education, Defense, Treasury, State and Transportation. Notably absent from that group is the Department of Homeland Security, which Democrats demanded be removed from the bill after two U.S. citizens were killed by federal immigration agents in Minnesota this month. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer's said DHS would instead be funded by a stopgap for two weeks. At least a partial government shutdown still looks likely after objections from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle delayed a vote in the Senate last night.
4. iBuy
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