‘Wolf of Wall Street’ Jordan Belfort breaks silence on Trump’s tariffs
‘Wolf of Wall Street’ Jordan Belfort has told Sky News there’s “no way” Donald Trump is guilty of insider trading or market manipulation.
Opponents say the president has questions to answer after he said it was a “great time to buy” shares – four hours before the stock market surged on Wednesday when he paused tariffs.
Mr Belfort told Gillian Joseph the fact Mr Trump made the statement on social media meant it was public, rather than him tipping off a few people.
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Speaking on The World programme, Mr Belfort said: “I personally don’t find it overly suspicious. Especially since he’s told it to everybody at once.
“If he hadn’t said anything and told five of his best friends ‘I’m gonna ease this tariff situation – you should be buying’, that would be illegal.”
Insider trading is when people take advantage of non-public information to buy or sell shares and make a gain.
The former stockbroker was famously played by Leonardo DiCaprio in the film about his early life and admitted crimes related to stock manipulation.
Mr Belfort said Mr Trump’s post was just repeating what the president had said previously, and that buying when share prices plunge is a well-known investment move.
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“He had been saying that all along [to buy], it wasn’t the only time he’d said that,” said Mr Belfort.
“[Treasury] Secretary Bessent had been saying that too. It’s a really basic piece of advice.”
Stock markets around the world plunged dramatically on Monday due to the start of America’s wide-ranging tariffs on imports from around the world.
The world economy was rattled again just two days later when the president said nearly all of the taxes would go on hold for 90 days.
The key S&P 500 index jumped nearly 10% – a huge daily increase.
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Democrats and Republicans react to insider trading claims
Rival Democrat politicians say Mr Trump‘s encouragement to buy raises “grave ethics concerns”.
Some are calling for an urgent inquiry into whether any of his family or administration officials benefited by dealing in the stock market ahead of time.
The White House said the president’s post was simply reassuring Americans “about their economic security in the face of nonstop media fearmongering”.
Mr Belfort accused Democrat figures of trying to “earn brownie points with the media and their party”.
‘Not gonna be pretty’
Despite the mid-week surge, turbulence in stock markets appears far from over – chiefly because China and the US remain locked in a tariffs stare down.
American indexes closed down again on Thursday, Japan’s Nikkei fell about 5% early on Friday, and Hong Kong stocks are heading for their worst week since 2008.
Gold meanwhile, considered a “safe haven” asset, has climbed to a record price and earlier today passed the $3,200/oz level for the first time.
Mr Belfort told Sky News that while he was against tariffs generally, President Trump’s dramatic intervention was necessary as the US has an “insane” trade imbalance and imports far more than it exports.
“The United States has been drained of its wealth, drained of its factories,” he said.
“It’s not gonna be pretty,” added Mr Belfort. “There’s going to be pain – but the path we were on before is simply unsustainable. It had to change.”
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Trump tariffs: How have stock markets reacted
He said he was sceptical over fears the tariffs will hit US consumers hard, with some predicting goods – including popular items such as the iPhone – could jump in price if costs are passed on.
The former trader said he believes firms would shift production from China, which is subject to a tariff of more than 100%, to places such as India, and that exemptions would eventually be agreed.
He also gave the thumbs up to Elon Musk‘s controversial government efficiency role which has forced thousands of jobs cut.
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“I love what is being done because the amount of abuse and waste and fraud, it’s absolutely insane,” said Mr Belfort.
“It’s a great thing that’s happening. Obama talked about doing it, Clinton tried it; this is not a new idea to try to make the government more efficient.”
If Mr Musk leaves or quits in the near future, as is rumoured, Mr Belfort said the world’s richest man has installed “some very seasoned business people that really care about the country”.
A former top college football player has died along with members of her family in a private plane crash in New York state.
The twin-engine Mitsubishi MU-2B went down shortly after noon on Saturday in a muddy field in Copake, near the Massachusetts border, killing all six people on board.
Among the victims were Karenna Groff, a former MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) football player, who was named the 2022 NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) woman of the year.
Her neuroscientist father, Dr Michael Groff, her mother, Dr Joy Saini, a urogynecologist, and her brother, Jared Groff, who worked as a paralegal, were also killed.
Former college football player Karenna Groff. File pic: AP
Karenna Groff’s boyfriend, James Santoro, and Jared Groff’s partner, Alexia Couyutas Duarte, also died.
Mr Santoro’s father, John Santoro, said: “The 25 years we had with James were the best years of our lives… and the joy and love he brought us will be enough to last a lifetime.”
He described Karenna Groff and her relatives as “a wonderful family”.
“The world lost a lot of very good people who were going to do a lot of good for the world if they had the opportunity. We’re all personally devastated,” he added.
Read more from Sky News:
Governor flees with family as home ‘set ablaze’
Brother pays tribute to family killed in helicopter crash
They boarded Michael Groff’s private plane at Westchester County Airport in White Plains, a suburb of New York City, on Saturday morning to fly to Columbia County Airport.
But the aircraft crashed around 10 miles to the south and was left “compressed, buckled and embedded in the terrain”, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) official Todd Inman said.
Shortly before the plane came down, the pilot had radioed air traffic control at Columbia County Airport to say he had missed the initial approach and requested a new approach plan, he said.
Investigators obtained video of the final seconds of the flight, which “appears to show that the aircraft was intact and crashed at a high rate of descent into the ground,” he added.
A full accident report could take between 12 and 24 months to complete.
It comes days after a family of five Spanish tourists, including three children, were killed in a helicopter crash in the Hudson River on Thursday.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and his family were forced to flee in the middle of the night during Passover after an alleged arsonist set fire to their residence, authorities said.
Mr Shapiro, a Democrat seen as a potential candidate for his party’s presidential nomination in 2028, said he and his family woke up at about 2am on Sunday to “bangs on the door” by police after a fire was allegedly set at the governor’s residence in Harrisburg.
Mr Shapiro said he, his wife, their four children, two dogs and another family were evacuated as the fire service tackled the flames.
Pic: Commonwealth Media Services
Pic: Commonwealth Media Services
“Thank God no one was injured,” he said in a post on X.
A 38-year-old man identified as Cody Balmer, from Harrisburg, was arrested later in the day.
Pic: Commonwealth Media Services
Pic: Commonwealth Media Services
He will face charges of attempted murder, terrorism, aggravated arson and aggravated assault, authorities said.
“Every day, we stand with the law enforcement and first responders who run towards danger to protect our communities,” Mr Shapiro said on X.
“Last night, they did so for our family – and Lori and I are eternally grateful to them for keeping us safe.”
Pic: Commonwealth Media Services
Charred wood and brick are visible at the Pennsylvania governor’s official residence. Pic: AP
Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro. Pic: Reuters
The suspect’s motive is still unknown.
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According to Pennsylvania police officials, he slipped over a fence around the property carrying homemade incendiary devices and evaded state troopers long enough to enter the residence, set it on fire and leave.
On Saturday, Mr Shapiro posted a picture of his family’s “seder” table as they celebrated the first night of the Jewish holiday of Passover.
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