Investment guru Jim Cramer thinks President Donald Trump was "rattled" by General Motors' plan to slash production at American plants.
The president’s reaction seemed extreme because Trump is beginning to realize there are "cracks" in the economy, Cramer said on CNBC.
Trump is starting to realize "holy cow" the booming U.S. growth "could go away," Cramer said.
To be sure, Trump on Thursday morning pushed back at GM for its plans to stop production at U.S. factors and cut out thousands of jobs, tweeting that its plans run counter to other economic successes under his administration.
"General Motors is very counter to what other auto, and other, companies are doing," he tweeted. "Big Steel is opening and renovating plants all over the country. Auto companies are pouring into the U.S., including BMW, which just announced a major new plant. The U.S.A. is booming!"
In another tweet, Trump said that "Billions of Dollars are pouring into the coffers of the U.S.A. because of the Tariffs being charged to China, and there is a long way to go. If companies don’t want to pay Tariffs, build in the U.S.A. Otherwise, lets just make our Country richer than ever before!"
Earlier this week, Trump said he told GM CEO Mary Barra that she should quit making cars in China and open a new plant in Ohio to replace the one in Lordstown, which is ending production, the Wall Street Journal reported.
As for rival auto makers, Ford Motor Co. said Wednesday it plans to reshuffle workers at several of its plants to meet rising demand for pickup trucks and large SUVs.
However, the data show no hard evidence to believe the economy is weakening on the surface.
Consumers boosted their spending in October at the fastest pace in seven months, while their incomes rose by the largest amount in nine months — both good signs for future economic growth.
Consumer spending rose a sharp 0.6 percent last month, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. It was the biggest increase since a similar gain in March and was three times faster than the 0.2 percent September performance. Incomes, which provide the fuel for spending, were up 0.5 percent in October, a significant pickup from a 0.2 percent September gain.
A key gauge of inflation tied to consumer spending posted a 2 percent rise in October compared to a year ago, hitting the annual target for inflation set by the Federal Reserve.
Both the climbs in spending and income were stronger than economists had been forecasting, the Associated Press reported.
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