By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the U.S. Commerce Department will tell senators on Wednesday he will “take a thoughtful and rigorous approach” to overseeing the agency but did not offer any specifics on tariffs or China policy.
Howard Lutnick, CEO of Wall Street brokerage firm Cantor Fitzgerald, did not address policy specifics in his written testimony for the Senate Commerce Committee seen by Reuters. As commerce secretary, Lutnick is to have “additional direct responsibility” for the U.S. Trade Representative’s office.
Lutnick’s testimony is largely biographical and does not address the $52.7 billion semiconductor chips manufacturing and research program approved by Congress and overseen by the department.
“We need healthy businesses – small, medium, and large – to hire our great American workers to drive our economy,” Lutnick’s testimony said.
On Monday, Trump said he plans to impose tariffs on imported computer chips, pharmaceuticals and steel to push companies to manufacture more in the U.S.
The Republican president has promised to slap 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico by Feb. 1 if the two countries do not meet demands on border security and other issues.
Lutnick is also likely to face questions on rising U.S. restrictions on AI chips, Chinese connected vehicles and a growing number of Chinese companies that face U.S. export controls as well as potential conflicts of interest given his large financial holdings.
“I will dedicate myself to making our government more responsive, working to ensure Americans have the greatest opportunity for success,” Lutnick’s testimony says.
Lutnick, who is worth $1.5 billion according to Forbes, also runs brokerage BGC Group and is chairman of Newmark Group, a commercial real estate services firm, and FMX, a platform owned by some of Wall Street’s biggest banks and traders.
He has vowed to resign from his positions and divest assets including his interests in those entities if confirmed.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Leslie Adler and David Gregorio)
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