Trump Taps Wall St. Executive Howard Lutnick for Commerce Secretary

President-elect Donald J. Trump picked Howard Lutnick to serve as commerce secretary on Tuesday, tapping a billionaire Wall Street executive for one of the most prominent and increasingly powerful economic positions in the federal government.

Mr. Lutnick, the chief executive of the financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, has emerged as a central economic adviser to Mr. Trump over the past year and has been leading his transition team. He has called for tariffs to protect U.S. industries from foreign competition, lower corporate taxes and an expansion of American energy production.

On Tuesday, Mr. Trump said in a post on Truth Social that Mr. Lutnick “will lead our tariff and trade agenda, with additional direct responsibility for the Office of the United States Trade Representative.”