Trump ally floats Norway tariffs over Caterpillar divestment

A Republican senator closely allied with US President Donald Trump suggested imposing additional tariffs on Norway in retaliation for a decision by the country’s sovereign wealth fund to divest its holdings of heavy-equipment maker Caterpillar Inc.

Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, in a social media post Thursday also floated halting US visas for leaders of the sovereign wealth fund and other “organizations that attempt to punish American companies for geopolitical differences.”

Norway’s $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund removed Texas-based Caterpillar from its fund this week based on Israel’s use of its bulldozers to destroy Palestinian property in Gaza and the West Bank. The fund held about $2.1 billion worth of shares in the company as of June 30.

The Norwegian government didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on Graham’s social media post. The Trump administration has already placed a 15% tariff on imports from Norway while the two nations remain engaged in trade negotiations.

Calls to act from Trump’s allies in Congress have previously prompted the president to speak out or weigh broader executive actions. The president called on Intel Corp. chief executive Lip-Bu Tan to step down after Republican Senator Tom Cotton publicly questioned the company’s board over Tan’s investments in Chinese semiconductor companies. Trump later praised Tan when Intel agreed to give the US a stake in the company.

Norges Bank Investment Management operates under a mandate set by the Norwegian parliament with ethical guidelines on issues ranging from land mines to climate change. It is advised by an external ethics council, which assesses the portfolio on an ongoing basis and recommends companies for exclusion or observation.

More than half of the fund’s investments were in US equities and bonds as of June 30.