Trump to name Larry Kudlow as his new economic advisor: Report

US President Donald Trump will likely name Larry Kudlow, a conservative media analyst, as his top economic advisor, according to a media report today.

Kudlow, would replace Gary Cohen, a former Goldman Sachs executive who quit the post after his differences with Trump on imposing a 25 per cent tariff on import of steel and 10 per cent on aluminum.

According to media reports, Trump offered Kudlow the job of the head of the White House National Economic Council yesterday. A informal advisor to Trump since his 2016 election campaign days, Kudlow accepted the offer.

Kudlow, 70, is a senior contributor to CNBC news channel, which first reported the news. He served in the Regan administration where he learnt craft the economic policy.

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said she had no personnel announcements to make, though she confirmed that Trump spoke to Kudlow yesterday.

Kudlow's ascension, however, does not solve the disagreement inside the administration over Trump's tariff decision. The cable news personality has been outspoken in opposition to the tariff plan and wrote an op-ed for CNBC earlier this month that detailed his disagreements, CNN reported.

"In other words, steel and aluminum may win in the short term, but steel and aluminum users and consumers will lose," Kudlow wrote. "In fact, tariff hikes are really tax hikes."
He added that Kudlow has "come around to believing in tariffs as a negotiating point."