The Trump administration has been quietly tipping off Wall Street executives about the progress of tariff negotiations ahead of a possible deal with India, a Fox Business journalist reported Thursday.
“People inside the Trump White House are alerting Wall Street execs they are nearing an agreement in principle on trade with India, according to my sources who are senior Wall Street execs with ties to the White House,” Fox Business reporter Charles Gasparino posted on X.
The post drew howls of accusations of insider trading since Wall Street firms could take advantage of the information to make money on the stock market for themselves and their clients that the public is not yet privy to..
SCOOP: People inside the Trump White House are alerting Wall Street execs they are nearing an agreement in principle on trade with India, according to my sources who are senior Wall Street execs w ties to the White House. No details on timing, and recall that we have been here…
— Charles Gasparino (@CGasparino) April 24, 2025
Bloomberg reporter Joel Weisenthal snapped back on X that the story isn’t the India deal, but the fact that the White House appeared to be first tipping off Wall Street ahead of the public.
The feeding of new inside information to Wall Street comes just over two weeks after Trump bragged in the Oval Office about the killing on the stock market his billionaire pals made when he pulled the plug on his tariffs just hours after he imposed them.
“THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!!!” he gushed on Truth Social just four hours before he paused the controversial tariffs on April 9.
The initially sinking market ultimately closed more than 9 percent higher that day.
At the White House Oval Office later that day, Trump pointed to a pair of billionaire visitors.
“He made $2.5 billion, and he made $900 million! That’s not bad!” said a beaming Trump, pointing to financial investor Charles Schwab and then NASCAR team owner Roger Penske. The men were part of a visiting guest contingent of mostly racing notables.
Schwab is estimated to be worth $12.9 billion and Penske $5.6 billion.
Bloomberg reported that Wednesday was the “best day ever” for billionaires as the world’s wealthiest people raked in $304 billion when the markets rocketed back up.
The windfalls quickly triggered accusations of market manipulation and insider trading, as Trump critics accused the president of tipping off his well-heeled friends to buy, knowing that a suspension of the tariffs on his own order would boost stock prices.
California Democratic Senator Adam Schiff is calling for a congressional investigation into the well-timed tariff pause.
“Trump is creating giant market fluctuations with his on-again, off-again tariffs. These constant gyrations in policy provide dangerous opportunities for insider trading,” Schiff wrote on X at the time.
A White House spokesperson accused the Democrats of playing “partisan games” after calls for an investigation.
