President Donald Trump on Monday boasted that the economy is roaring under his presidency during remarks at an Ohio manufacturing company, linking economic gains to his policies and the tax cut legislation he signed into law.
But Trump’s economy-focused, campaign-style remarks on Monday ignored the beating the stock market has taken in the last two days of trading, with the Dow dropping more than 1,000 points in the biggest drop in the past two years amid turmoil in the US bond market. Instead, he focused squarely on the positive.
“Your taxes are going way down. And right now, for the first time in a long time … factories are coming back, everything’s coming back,” Trump said as he touted jobs growth and increased investments in the US. “America is once again open for business.”
Trump has repeatedly touted stock market rallies throughout the 13 months of his presidency, but has not yet said anything about the downturn in the stock market.
The stock market dip follows months of record highs, but still leaves the economy at a significantly higher level than it was when Trump took office.
Pressed about the stock market losses, White House deputy press secretary Raj Shah acknowledged “markets do fluctuate in the short term, I think we all know that. But the fundamentals of this economy are very strong.”
Another White House official said the administration is “always concerned” when the market dips, but also noted that the US economy is fundamentally strong.
Trump’s event Monday in Cincinnati is part of the President’s latest effort to tout the tax cuts he and Republicans in Congress delivered late last year.