Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, saw its stock drop by about 4.5 percent on Monday after former President Trump labeled Facebook as “an enemy of the people” during an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” The shares closed just under $484, marking the lowest closing for Meta since July of the previous year.
Trump’s comments came as he doubled down on his opposition to a potential ban on the video-sharing platform TikTok in the United States, which Congress is set to address this week. He argued that banning TikTok would only serve to benefit Facebook, making it “bigger.”
Meta Industry (Credits: The Hill)
The House is scheduled to vote on a bill that would require ByteDance, the China-based parent company of TikTok, to divest itself of the video app or face a ban in the U.S. The bill received unanimous support from the House Energy and Commerce Committee last Thursday.
Trump and Facebook Founder (Credits: CNN)
Despite his previous support for banning TikTok while in office, Trump signaled last week that he opposed the current bill. He expressed concerns that banning TikTok would lead to increased dominance by Facebook, which he views as an “enemy of the people.”
Following Trump’s comments on Friday, Meta’s shares dropped by 1.2 percent. The fluctuation in Meta’s stock price underscores the impact of Trump’s remarks on investor sentiment towards the company.
