Washington Post: How a Week of Tweets by Trump Stoked Anxiety, Moved Markets and Altered Plans

By Philip Rucker and Danielle Paquette:

From his glimmering Manhattan tower, President-elect Donald Trump launched a 7:30 a.m. missive to his 18.9 million Twitter followers: “General Motors is sending Mexican made model of Chevy Cruze to U.S. car dealers-tax free across border. Make in U.S.A. or pay big border tax!”

Trump’s demand ricocheted across social media in some 18,000 retweets. Then came the fallout: Google searches about GM spiked by 200 percent. GM’s stock value declined by 24 cents to $34.60 a share. And at corporate headquarters in Detroit, GM executives sprang into action. They had a reputation to save — and facts to correct.

At 9:10 a.m. landed a statement from one of the world’s biggest corporations: “All Chevrolet Cruze sedans sold in the U.S. are built in GM’s assembly plant in Lordstown, Ohio.” The automaker added that it assembles a hatchback Cruze model in Mexico but that it is for “global markets” and that only 4,500, or about 2 percent, were sold on American soil.

The Full Story (January 7, 2017)