Samsung Electronics is seeking a replacement with connections to the Republican Party and the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, as the company’s head of North American public affairs is scheduled to step down, according to a South Korean publication on Friday.
TakeAway Points:
- Samsung Electronics’ head of North American public affairs is expected to resign, and it is looking for a successor with ties to U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration and the Republican Party.
- Alphabet was subpoenaed by the U.S. House Judiciary Committee on Thursday to seek its correspondence about content moderation rules with the former administration of President Joe Biden.
- The subpoena seeks communications about limits or bans on content about President Donald Trump, Tesla CEO and close Trump ally Elon Musk, the virus that causes COVID-19, and a host of other conservative discussion topics.
- The seven most valuable tech companies lost more than $750 billion in market value on Monday as recession fears rattled Wall Street.
Samsung seeks ties with Trump
Samsung is looking to replace the current person in the North American external relations role, Mark Lippert, who served as U.S. ambassador to South Korea during the Obama administration and was hired by Samsung in 2022 while former President Joe Biden was in office, DongA Ilbo reported, citing unnamed industry sources.
A Samsung spokesperson said it does not comment on speculation, while Lippert did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comments.
US House panel subpoenas Alphabet over content moderation
The U.S. House Judiciary Committee subpoenaed Alphabet on Thursday seeking its communications with former President Joe Biden’s administration about content moderation policies.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, a Republican, also asked the YouTube parent company for similar communications with companies and groups outside government, according to a copy of the subpoena seen by Reuters.
The subpoena seeks communications about limits or bans on content about President Donald Trump, Tesla CEO and close Trump ally Elon Musk, the virus that causes COVID-19 and a host of other conservative discussion topics.
The Trump administration and Republicans in Congress have taken aim at Big Tech companies over policies they say lead to suppression of conservative viewpoints online. U.S. Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson has said companies that coordinated their policies with others or misled users about their own policies may have violated the law.
Last year under scrutiny from Jordan’s House panel, Meta Platforms said the Biden administration had pressured it to censor content. The company ultimately dialed back its content moderation in January.
“Alphabet, to our knowledge, has not similarly disavowed the Biden-Harris Administration’s attempts to censor speech,” Jordan said in a letter to the company on Thursday.
Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda said the company will “continue to show the committee how we enforce our policies independently, rooted in our commitment to free expression.”
Tech megacaps lose over $750 billion in market cap
With the Nasdaq suffering its steepest drop since 2022 on Monday, the seven most valuable tech companies lost more than $750 billion in market value. Recession fears and concerns about a trade war drove the selloff.
Apple led the megacap losses, with its value plummeting by about $174 billion. Nvidia shaved off almost $140 billion in market value and shares closed down 5%. The leading AI chipmaker has lost nearly a third of its value just two months after notching a fresh high in January.
Tesla had the biggest percentage loss, with shares of the electric vehicle maker tumbling 15%, their worst day since 2020. The company has lost more than half its value since its stock price peaked in mid-December. The stock is also coming off its longest weekly losing streak in history as a public company.
Tesla lost $130 billion in value on Monday, while Microsoft and Alphabet lost $98 billion and $95 billion, respectively. Amazon lost $50 billion and Meta lost $70 billion.
Alphabet and Meta dropped more than 4% on Monday, while Microsoft and Amazon dropped at least 2% each. The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund fell more than 4%, entering correction territory. Shares are more than 14% off their high.
Heavy selling intensified across the tech, with the Nasdaq falling to a six-month low. Many tech companies rely on parts and manufacturing overseas and new levies could push up prices. That’s also sparked worries of a U.S. recession, which Trump didn’t rule out over the weekend.
Semiconductor makers have also felt the pain, with the sector a primary target of new tariffs. Last week, the president announced an additional $100 billion investment from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and called the company the “most powerful” in the world as he looks to boost domestic production.
The VanEck Semiconductor ETF has plunged 3% over the past week and is down more than 16% since the inauguration. Heavy selling rattled the sector again Monday, with the ETF last down roughly 5%. Marvell Technology shed 8%, while ASML Holding and Micron Technology slumped more than 6% each. Broadcom fell 5%.
