The largest manipulation in the history of the American stock market... at the hands of a head of state!
On April 9, one of the most dangerous and bizarre economic moves in the history of the United States occurred, with Donald Trump as the main actor.
How did this happen? Let me tell you the story from the beginning...
After a significant escalation in the trade war with China, Trump decided to impose huge tariffs on goods imported from more than 90 countries, with some tariffs reaching 125%. This decision caused panic in global markets, and American stock exchanges lost nearly $10 trillion in market value in just a few days.
People sold... the market crashed... stocks kept getting cheaper every hour...
But the controversy started afterwards.
Amid the collapse, Trump began posting statements on his platform "Truth Social" urging people to buy stocks, describing the situation as "a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
And on the morning of April 9, Trump tweeted:
"Now is an excellent time to buy... DJT"
This symbol represents his publicly traded company: Trump Media & Technology Group.
I mean, clearly, the American president is advising buying shares of his company at the peak of a crisis he was the main cause of!
And just 4 hours after the tweet... the surprise happened.
Trump announced a 90-day delay in implementing the tariffs.
And the result?
The markets surged dramatically
The S&P 500 index jumped by 9.5%
The markets regained about $4 trillion
And DJT's stock rose by 22% on the same day
Trump personally made about $415 million in just one hour.
Not only that, but market reports revealed unusual activity in trading certain stocks' options (Call Options) before the sudden announcement.
And this is a clear indication that some big investors were aware of the upcoming changes.
Who won?
Big businessmen and investors close to Trump's circle.
And who lost?
Ordinary people and small investors who sold at a loss out of fear of a crash.
All of this resembles a well-known scheme in the financial world called:
Pump and Dump
It means buying cheap, promoting your stock or lifting the market, selling high... and the rest lose.
Members of Congress, like Elizabeth Warren, described what happened as "unprecedented manipulation," while the White House justified the situation by saying that "the president has the right to reassure the markets."
And in a serious leak from inside the White House, Trump appeared in a meeting laughing and saying:
"He made $2.5 billion today, and he made $900 million.. not bad!"
And it referred to businessmen close to him like Charles Schwab, who actually made billions on the same day.
Is all of this a coincidence? Or a systematic fraud?
What happened opened the door to widespread debate:
Is it acceptable for a head of state to use his position to influence the markets?
Have tweets become tools for stealing people's wealth?
And is America still punishing manipulators? Or has it started rewarding them if they are in a position of power?
In any case, what happened on April 9 is not just a turbulent day in the stock market...
This could go down in history as one of the most dangerous manipulations of the financial market from inside the White House itself.
By / Sharif Al-Ajaty