900-page report reveals Trump's "mysterious trading" last year: AI trading timing, high-frequency portfolio shifts around tariff turmoil

Original Author: Li Dan

Original Source: Wall Street CN

The U.S. government's 2025 financial information file report released this week not only revealed that President Donald Trump made over $1 billion from cryptocurrency businesses last year, but also, for the first time, fully detailed Trump's precise stock trading moves during the most volatile period in U.S. stocks last year.

The report released by the U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE) spans 927 pages. Analysis by some U.S. media outlets found that, around the time Trump announced global reciprocal tariffs, his investment account executed hundreds of stock trades for several consecutive days and concentrated on buying blue-chip stocks like Apple and Berkshire Hathaway just before the tariff suspension. Months later, on the day the White House announced its AI action plan, the account significantly increased holdings in AI leaders such as Nvidia, Microsoft, and Amazon.

Although the White House emphasizes that Trump himself does not participate in account trading and all securities investments are managed by independent investment advisors, with his son Donald Trump Jr. responsible for the trust, the high coincidence of trading times with major policy announcements has once again sparked scrutiny from U.S. ethics oversight bodies regarding potential conflicts of interest for the president.

Compared to last year's disclosure, which only showed about 1,000 trades, this year's annual financial disclosure by Trump has, for the first time, fully made public over 21,000 securities transactions from 2025, covering stocks, ETFs, and funds. This allows the market to observe, for the first time, the investment behavior of Trump's account around key policy inflection points related to tariffs, AI, and rare earths.

Unusually Active Trading Around Reciprocal Tariffs: Hundreds of Stocks Bought and Sold on Two Consecutive Days Following Tariff Announcement

According to an analysis by U.S. media based on the OGE financial disclosure, on April 3 and 4, following Trump's announcement of global reciprocal tariffs, his investment account executed hundreds of stock trades, continuously adjusting positions during the market's sharp decline.

The trading strategy subsequently showed a clear shift.

On April 8, the day before Trump announced the suspension of most reciprocal tariffs, instead of continuing to sell, his account bought 327 stocks in a single transaction, investing over $3.6 million, primarily increasing holdings in major blue-chip companies like Apple and Berkshire Hathaway.

On the morning of April 9, Eastern Time, Trump posted on his social media platform: "It's a great time to buy." That afternoon, the U.S. government announced a 90-day pause on most reciprocal tariffs, leading to a historic rebound in U.S. stocks, with the S&P 500 posting one of its largest single-day gains since 2008.

While the White House emphasizes that Trump's stock trades are executed independently by investment advisors, the high degree of timing coincidence has once again made these trades a focal point for U.S. ethics oversight bodies.

Over 21,000 Trades in a Year, Average Daily Trading Volume Exceeds $4.2 Million

According to the OGE report analyzed by U.S. media, in 2025, Trump's investment account conducted over 21,000 trades, with an average daily trading volume of approximately $4.2 million. The account completed hundreds of buys and sells almost every day.

Reports suggest this trading pattern is more akin to tax-loss harvesting or quantitative rebalancing strategies, rather than traditional active market timing.

However, as these trades have only been fully disclosed in this financial filing, Trump previously only disclosed about 1,000 significant trades as required by law, meaning his full year's investment activities were largely out of the public eye until now.

Notably, due to some trades not being disclosed within the required 45-day period, the first page of Trump's financial report also shows a $200 late filing penalty.

Heavy Purchases of Nvidia, Microsoft, and Apple on the Day of AI Strategy Announcement

Beyond the tariff-related trades, another set of transactions drawing market attention involves AI-related investments.

U.S. media points out that on the day the White House announced its AI Action Plan in July 2025, Trump's investment account simultaneously executed what appears to be one of the largest tech stock positions of the year.

On that day, the stocks heavily purchased by Trump's account included: Nvidia (NVDA) at least $1 million, Microsoft (MSFT) at least $1 million, Apple (AAPL) at least $1 million, Amazon (AMZN) at least $1 million, and Broadcom (AVGO) at least $1 million. Additionally, multiple accounts each increased holdings in Google's parent company Alphabet by at least $1 million.

The disclosure documents also show that Nvidia generated a capital gain of $2,501–$5,000 for Trump, with stocks like Oracle, Qualcomm, and Thermo Fisher also recording capital gains.

Investments in Intel and MP Materials Also Caught Policy Tailwinds

Besides AI leaders, U.S. media also noted that Trump's account's operations in the following two companies attracted market attention:

• Intel (INTC)

On August 18, 2025, Trump's account purchased at least $250,000 worth of Intel stock. A few days later, the U.S. government announced it would acquire approximately a 10% stake in Intel to support the company's restructuring. Since then, Intel's stock price has surged over 380% since late August last year, as of the close this Thursday.

• MP Materials (MP)

Early in Trump's presidential term last year, his account began purchasing shares of U.S. rare earth company MP Materials. In eight transactions through May 2025, accounts under Trump's name bought shares of this rare earth producer, valued between $22,000 and $155,000. In July of the same year, the U.S. Department of Defense announced it would spend $400 million to buy preferred shares of the company. Upon exercise, it would hold a 15% stake, becoming its largest shareholder, to foster a domestic U.S. rare earth supply chain.

Financial disclosure shows Trump subsequently sold some MP holdings, realizing a capital gain of $100,000–$1 million for the year.

White House Response: The President Does Not Participate in Trading

Facing public skepticism, the White House reiterated that Trump personally does not manage the investment account; all trades are handled by independent financial advisors, and the majority of his assets are placed in a trust managed by his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr.

White House spokesperson Anna Kelly stated: "The President and his family have never and will never engage in any conflict of interest behaviors."

However, ethics organizations argue that without establishing a truly independent "blind trust," the frequent trading of stocks related to major policy announcements around the time of those announcements could still harm public trust in the independence of policymaking.

In fact, this is not the first time Trump's securities investments have sparked controversy. Last year's financial disclosure documents also showed that his securities accounts held stocks of major tech companies like Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Alphabet, with broad allocation to the U.S. stock market through ETFs.

But the complete trading records made public for the first time this year link these changes in holdings to key timing events like tariff policies, AI strategy, and industrial support policies. This connects Trump's personal wealth management with public policy in a way that once again becomes a focus of attention in Washington.