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WSJ "Net purchase of 327 stocks the day before the reprieve announcement"...Conflict of interest controversy reignited
Trump draws a line, saying "I entrusted investments to others"...Intel and rare earth company investments also controversial
It was belatedly confirmed that U.S. President Donald Trump bought a large number of 327 blue-chip stocks the day before the announcement of a mutual tariff reprieve last year, the U.S. daily Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 2nd (local time).
These are the details of securities transactions included in President Trump's financial disclosure data released this week. It is reigniting concerns about conflicts of interest that have consistently followed President Trump.
According to the report, the financial disclosure data, which is over 900 pages long and released this week, contains more than 21,000 stock transactions made in President Trump's investment accounts last year.
Among them, what stands out are the stock transactions made around 'Liberation Day', the date of the mutual tariff policy announcement.
According to the data, hundreds of stocks were bought and sold in President Trump's investment accounts on April 3-4, immediately after he announced country-specific mutual tariffs at the White House on April 2 last year.
On April 8, a somewhat different pattern of transactions was observed in his investment account.
On this day, he purchased more than $3.6 million (approximately 5.5 billion Korean Won) worth of 327 blue-chip stocks, including Apple and Berkshire Hathaway, without any sales.
The notable point is that the announcement of the mutual tariff reprieve, a major positive factor, was made the very next day.
On the morning of April 9, President Trump publicly stated on social media that it was "a good time to buy," and then announced in the afternoon of the same day that tariff imposition would be suspended for 90 days for most countries except China. The stock market then surged.
Dan Weiskopf, a senior portfolio manager at Tidal Financial Group, said, "The trading volume far, overwhelmingly exceeds what most financial advisors do for their clients. That alone doesn't make sense."
He added, "I don't think President Trump is someone who isn't involved in investments at all."
The disclosure also included investments in government-supported companies.
Trump's account purchased at least $250,000 worth of Intel shares, and a few days later, the government announced a plan to acquire approximately 10% of Intel's stake. Intel's stock price subsequently rose by more than 370%.
After purchasing shares in the rare earth company MP Materials, the stock price also surged when the government's plan to invest 15% equity to foster the U.S. rare earth industry was announced.
The U.S. Federal Ethics Act, enacted in 1978, did not impose an obligation on the president to 'dispose of assets that could lead to a conflict of interest.'
However, past U.S. presidents voluntarily disposed of assets that could pose a conflict of interest or placed them in a blind trust. President Trump is the first president since the enactment of the law not to follow this tradition.
A significant portion of President Trump's assets are held in a trust managed by his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr.
In an interview with CNBC on this day, President Trump said, "I entrusted investments to (other) people and I don't even talk to them."
Federal law requires the president and senior executive branch officials to disclose securities transactions exceeding $1,000 within 45 days. However, President Trump disclosed only about 1,000 of the more than 21,000 stock transactions made last year within the deadline, with the rest being belatedly disclosed through this financial disclosure.
If an official reports a transaction after the legal deadline, a fine of $200 is imposed for each delayed report. The cover of the financial disclosure released this week states that President Trump paid these fines.
White House press secretary Anna Kelly stated, "The President and his family have not been, nor will they ever be, involved in conflicts of interest."
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