sbfm and all -- A sovereign wealth fund, or whatever its name might be, should produce a return on investment (ROI) greatly exceeding the cost of the investment. Since the U.S. is already in debt, any fund must offset the cost of debt service, plus an additional return that would justify the risk of investing in a company with a questionable earnings record and questionable quality of management.
Currently, long term Treasury bonds bear interest at more than 4.5% annually. The risk of investing at this time in a company like Intel, which is nowhere near the leader in semiconductor fabrication, would, in my view require a ROI of at least 9 percent (4.5% current rate for long term debt service, plus another 4.5% to cover the risk of an equity position in Intel). Note that an investment guru like Warren Buffett would never invest in mediocre management, nor would he be very happy about buying ordinary common stock. He would instead favor a convertible preferred stock or bond, with a dividend or interest paid ahead of any outstanding common stock dividend, and a conversion rate that would provide a high probability of a ROI in the coming 3 to 5 years. In other words, a high probability of a 9% or better ROI in the next 3 to 5 years.
I don't think an investment in Intel would produce that high a ROI, unless, of course, the administration favored Intel chip contracts, or even worse, demanded that other firms buy Intel chips in order to qualify for government contracts. Pay to play contracts only worsen the burden of public debt, meaning taxpayers, especially those in low to middle income groups, pay most of the cost.
I've had enough experience working in government to know how this business works. It's not pretty.
P.S. Even the current president prefers bonds or convertible preferred stocks, as evidenced by more than 600 trades made by his sons or associates since last January, but delivering income to him, as shown in recently released court documents (defamation lawsuit settlements involving voting firms and Fox News).
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