Alwaght- Former advisor to US president has sold more than 31 million USD of shares in a company that is heavily dependent on steel imports, shortly before Donald Trump’s announcement of new tariffs sent its shares plummeting some 5.5 percent.
Carl Icahn, a billionaire investor who was a major Trump supporter, started selling shares in the crane and lifting equipment supplier Manitowoc Company on 12 February, days before the commerce department first mooted plans to impose stiff tariffs on foreign steel imports, The Guardian reported.
On Thursday Trump said he would press ahead with the commerce department’s plans to levy 25% tariffs on imports of steel and 10% on aluminum.
According to a regulatory filing, Icahn was able to sell his shares for $32 to $34. On Friday morning Manitowoc’s shares had fallen 5.48% to $26.37. The fall was in line with drops seen by other companies dependent on cheap steel imports, including Boeing and Caterpillar.
Icahn, who has a fortune of $16.9bn according to Forbes, sold 1m shares in Manitowoc, according to the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The value of the shares he sold has since dropped by around $6m.
The investor was a special adviser to Trump during the election but resigned his position amid concerns about potential conflicts of interest relating to his vast business holdings.
