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Citigroup has employed Robert Lighthizer, US President Donald Trump’s former commerce consultant, to advise its purchasers on learn how to navigate the fallout from the administration’s commerce conflict.
The Wall Road financial institution on Thursday confirmed that it had appointed the previous US commerce consultant as a senior adviser because it seeks to assist company purchasers reply to Trump’s sweeping import tariffs.
Lighthizer served as Trump’s commerce chief between 2017 and 2021 and performed a key position in shaping the administration’s protectionist agenda on the time. The previous official was instrumental in imposing commerce boundaries with China and renegotiating the North American Free Commerce Settlement with Mexico and Canada on behalf of the US.
“Given our world presence, having Ambassador Lighthizer’s insights into the dynamics dealing with world commerce may be very precious to us and our purchasers,” Citi mentioned. The appointment was first reported by the Wall Road Journal.
An individual acquainted with the matter mentioned Lighthizer had not been employed to work full time on the financial institution, and was performing equally to a advisor.
Trump’s protectionist commerce insurance policies have sparked market turmoil that has proved a double-edged sword for Wall Road banks.
The import tariffs have upended monetary markets and put dealmaking on ice, dashing hopes that the administration’s deregulation push would unleash “animal spirits” and unlock pent up demand for mergers and acquisitions.
Nonetheless, banks have benefited from elevated buying and selling exercise due to higher volatility in markets, with Citi’s 20 per cent improve in first-quarter income boosted by the efficiency of its buying and selling enterprise.
The US is at present in a 90-day holding interval throughout which lots of the sweeping tariffs introduced on April 2 are paused, in a bid to permit Washington and its commerce companions time to barter.
Citi chief monetary officer Mark Mason informed reporters final month that the financial institution’s company purchasers have been “prepping for extra headwind” with some bolstering their steadiness sheets or accelerating imports. Citi is current in additional than 90 international locations.
