By David Shepardson and Lananh Nguyen
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Senate Commerce Committee said on Wednesday it would hold a Jan. 29 hearing on President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Commerce Department, the agency that has become a key U.S. tool in its efforts to constrain China’s tech sector.
Trump tapped Wall Street CEO Howard Lutnick to lead the department and his trade and tariff strategy. The head of brokerage firm Cantor Fitzgerald, Lutnick will also have “additional direct responsibility” for the U.S. Trade Representative’s office, Trump said last year.
Lutnick also runs brokerage BGC Group and is chairman of Newmark Group (NASDAQ:), a commercial real estate services firm, and FMX, a platform owned by some of Wall Street’s biggest banks and traders.
In a document seen by Reuters, Lutnick said that if confirmed he would resign from his positions at Cantor, BGC and Newmark and divest assets including his interests in…