Mnuchin Says Amazon Has 'Destroyed the Retail Industry,' U.S. Should Investigate
David Ryder/Getty
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Wednesday the U.S. Justice Department should investigate Amazon.com (AMZN) - Get Report because the online retailing giant has "destroyed the retail industry."
"I think if you look at Amazon, although there are certain benefits to it, they've destroyed the retail industry across the United States so there's no question they've limited competition," Mnuchin said. "I think it's very good that the attorney general is going to look into this. I think it's an important issue and I look forward to him reporting back to the president and hearing his recommendations."
Mnuchin's comments follow up a Department of Justice announcement on Tuesday that said the agency was opening a broad antitrust review of big tech companies. The DOJ also
Amazon fell 0.58% to $1982.89 in trading Wednesday. Fellow tech giants Apple (AAPL) - Get Report , Alphabet (GOOGL) - Get Report and Facebook (FB) - Get Report traded lower. Facebook, in a separate matter, agreed to pay a $5 billion penalty -- the largest civil fine by far ever imposed by the Federal Trade Commission -- and make significant changes to its board.
The DOJ said Tuesday that its antitrust division was reviewing "whether and how market-leading online platforms have achieved market power and are engaging in practices that have reduced competition, stifled innovation, or otherwise harmed consumers."
Amazon, Apple, Alphabet and Facebook are holdings in Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS charitable trust.