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Transportation Secretary Sold Stock Before Trump's Tariff Plan Announcement, Raising Insider Trading Concerns

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sold stock in almost three dozen companies just before President Donald Trump announced plans for "reciprocal" tariffs on foreign imports, sparking concerns about insider trading. Duffy's February 11 sales occurred near the stock market's historic peak, just before it began to slide amid concerns about Trump's tariff plans and ultimately plummeted after the president unveiled the details of the new tariffs on April 2.

Key Takeaways:

  • Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sold stock in almost three dozen companies on February 11, just before President Trump announced plans for "reciprocal" tariffs on foreign imports.
  • Duffy's stock sales occurred near the stock market's historic peak, just before it began to slide amid concerns about Trump's tariff plans and ultimately plummeted after the president unveiled the details of the new tariffs on April 2.
  • Duffy has presented himself as one of the intellectual forefathers of Trump's current trade agenda, introducing a bill in 2019 that mirrors Trump's reciprocal tariff plan.
  • Trades by government officials informed by nonpublic information learned through their jobs could violate the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge, or STOCK, Act.
  • Duffy's spokesperson claimed that outside account managers made the trades and that Duffy "had no input on the timing of the sales."
  • The spokesperson also stated that Duffy's stock transactions "are part of a retirement account and not managed directly by the Secretary" and that "The Secretary strongly supports the President's tariff policy, but he isn't part of the administration's decisions on tariff levels."

Statistics:

  • $75,000 to $600,000: The range of stock sold by Duffy on February 11 and February 13.
  • 34: The number of stocks sold by Duffy.
  • $90,000 to $650,000: The range of stock worth sold between February 11 and February 13.
  • $27,000 to $405,000: The range of stock worth in the other 27 companies sold by Duffy.
  • 19%: The decline in the S&P 500 index in the weeks following Duffy's sales.
  • 13%: The decline in the S&P 500 index specifically after Trump unveiled the details of his reciprocal tariff plan.
  • 2012: The year the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge, or STOCK, Act was passed, which clarified that executive and legislative branch employees cannot use nonpublic government information to trade stock and requires them to promptly disclose their trades.

Sources:

  • (https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/02/reciprocal-trade-and-tariffs/)
  • (https://extapps2.oge.gov/201/Presiden.nsf/PAS+Index/FED6F4F51D33882F85258C8A002C760E/$FILE/Sean-Duffy-04.23.2025-278T.pdf)
  • (https://www.nbcnews.com/business/markets/us-stocks-dow-nasdaq-sp-plummet-trump-tariffs-rcna199476)
  • (https://x.com/SecDuffy/status/1908296966360228316)
  • (https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/116/hr764)
  • (https://www.manufacturingdive.com/news/deere-shines-light-on-500-million-tariffs-impact-Q2-rebound/748322/)
  • (https://www.propublica.org/article/donald-trump-media-truth-social-sec-securities-exchange-commission)

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