US planning unorthodox sovereign fund to counter rivals: FT

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Financial Times
7 Sep 2024 16:32

The US has had a history of labeling economic policies as "unfair competition" and later adopting them to protect its economic position.

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White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during a press conference at the end of his visit at the US embassy in Beijing, on August 29, 2024. (AP)

The White House is studying a plan to set up a United States sovereign wealth fund, an idea which has also received the support of former President Donald Trump, according to the Financial Times.

A report explained that senior members of the Biden administration, including National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, and top aide on international economics, Daleep Singh, had been working on the plans for months.

Such a move would mark a new era of US financial policies, as the establishment of a sovereign fund largely goes against supposed American values. Sovereign funds around the world have been criticized for "unfair economic competition," however, now Washington feels that such a government-owned structure could aid it against its rivals.

The push for a sovereign fund was "serious enough" that the idea garnered the involvement of other government agencies, who planned to promote the idea with Congress and key stakeholders in the private sector.

A White House official revealed that the initiative stems from a belief that the US "lacks a pool of patient and flexible capital" to be deployed both domestically and internationally in ways that would advance strategic interests. The official emphasized the need for such capital to operate at the required space and scale for the US to maintain an edge in a competitive geopolitical landscape.

Discussions within the White House, initially reported by Bloomberg News, have been ongoing for months. However, the concept of establishing a US sovereign wealth fund gained political momentum this week when former President Donald Trump, currently seeking a second term, endorsed it during a speech at the Economic Club of New York.

"We could invest in state-of-the-art manufacturing hubs, advanced defense technologies, cutting-edge medical research, and potentially save billions by preventing diseases," Trump told the audience.

American industries have suffered from sovereign fund investments in several key sectors, including green energy-related products. Electric Vehicles in particular and Chinese subsidies for companies have allowed the country to dominate the EV market.

Now, the US is struggling to gain a foothold in the market and issued tariffs on Chinese products, reaching 100% in the case of Chinese EVs.