Following Intel deal, US could obtain stakes in key sectors like ship making

US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent revealed that the US government could get involved in key sectors like shipbuilding by purchasing stakes in those companies.

This view was expressed during an interview on August 27 to the Fox News channel, Caliber.Az reports.

He made those comments while speaking on the news that the US government would take a 10% equity stake in chipmaker Intel.

Asked by the anchor about whether the same could happen for semiconductor giant Nvidia, Bessent replied: “I don’t think Nvidia needs financial support, so that seems not on the table right now. [...] But could there be other industries where we’re reshaping something like shipbuilding, sure, there could be things like that.”

He further noted that “these are critical industries that we have to be self-sufficient (in) in the US.”

The interview also touched upon the government's plans for the defence sector, with Bessent stating that he is not sure whether there is a need to take stakes in defence companies. “We’ll see whether the defence companies are fulfilling their mission in terms of providing adequate and timely deliveries for the US military, as opposed to maybe an over-emphasis on the shareholders,” he added.

On August 22, the US government announced that it will make an $8.9 billion investment in Intel common stock as the company builds upon its more than $100 billion expansion of resilient semiconductor supply chain. This will represent a 9.9% stake in the company, but the company's statement on the historic deal clarified that the investment was “passive ownership” with no board representation or other governance rights.

By Nazrin Sadigova