CMEDIA: US President Donald Trump’s administration reportedly said that it would not consider stock market reaction when slapping out the details of its tariff policy.
“This is very much about companies and countries that have ripped off this country, our country, our beloved United States. And they’re not going to be ripping us off any more. So, you know, I think that has an impact on the market,” the president said.
When asked if his decision to pause tariffs on many products from Canada and Mexico for one month was due to the stock market, Trump said it had “nothing to do with the market. I’m not even looking at the market, because long term the United States will be very strong with what is happening here.”
When Trump was later asked again about the market sell-off and blamed “globalists,” he replied,
“I think it’s globalists that see how rich our country’s going to be and they don’t like it…they’ve been ripping off this country for years…But we can’t let this continue to happen to America,” the president said.
Comments about the market sell-off were made due to the struggle faced by the US stock market in recent days, with the major Wall Street averages heading for a losing week and the Nasdaq Composite on Thursday, closed more than 10% below its recent high.
Some on Wall Street have hoped that Trump, who was seen as friendly to business during his first term and as a candidate, would keep the stock market from falling too far and would consider the stock market as something of an approval rating.
However in recent days even when it has seemingly sparked a sell-off in stocks, the Trump administration has continued to take an aggressive posture on trade.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Thursday that Trump’s focus was broader than the daily moves of the stock market.
“The president wants American growth and American prosperity.” Lutnick said on CNBC Thursday. “The president is focused on rebuilding America, and you are going to see growth in America…You’re going to see the stock market explode.”
