Trump says US ‘paid zero’ for Intel stake in new government deal | World News
US President Donald Trump said the federal government’s new stake in Intel was a “landmark deal”, claiming it came at no cost to taxpayers.
“I PAID ZERO FOR INTEL, IT IS WORTH APPROXIMATELY 11 BILLION DOLLARS. All goes to the USA,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “Why are ‘stupid’ people unhappy with that? I will make deals like that for our Country all day long… More jobs for America!!! Who would not want to make deals like that?”
The remarks came after Friday’s announcement that the government would acquire a 10% share in Intel, valued at about $8.9 billion. The investment will be funded partly through CHIPS Act grants and other programmes that support domestic chip production.
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Kevin Hassett, head of the White House National Economic Council, said the government would not intervene in Intel’s operations. “The President has long said the US should pursue a sovereign wealth fund, and this is a step in that direction,” Hassett told CNBC. “I fully expect there will be more such transactions, whether in this industry or others.”
Trump signed an executive order in February to establish a sovereign wealth fund, a model often used in countries such as Norway, China and Gulf states. Norway’s fund, based on oil and gas revenues, is the largest in the world at about $1.8 trillion.
Hassett noted that the US has taken stakes in private companies before, including during the 2008 bailouts of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. “We are absolutely not in the business of picking winners and losers,” he said. “But this kind of step is not unprecedented.”
He added that the Intel move forms part of a wider policy push that includes tariffs and incentives to expand manufacturing in the United States.
