Wilbur Ross Quotes

Powerful Wilbur Ross for Daily Growth

About Wilbur Ross

Wilbur Ross Jr., born on October 28, 1937, in Weehawken, New Jersey, is a renowned American investor, financier, and politician who specializes in restructuring distressed companies. Known for his shrewd business acumen and knack for turning around failing enterprises, Ross has become one of the most influential figures in the banking sector. Ross's interest in finance began early, with a scholarship to study at the University of Michigan, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics. He furthered his education at MIT Sloan School of Management, obtaining both a Master of Business Administration and a Doctorate in Economics. In the 1980s, Ross made his mark as a turnaround specialist by buying bankrupt companies like Drexel Burnham Lambert's commercial paper business and the Inland Steel Company. His successful restructuring of these companies established him as a formidable force in the financial world. Ross's influence extended beyond the business sphere, entering politics during the Trump administration as the Secretary of Commerce from 2017 to 2019. Despite his political tenure, Ross remains best known for his work as an investor and entrepreneur. One of his most notable achievements is the formation of WL Ross & Co., a private equity firm that specializes in purchasing distressed assets. The firm's success led to its acquisition by Invesco in 2006, with Ross serving as vice chairman until 2017. Ross's approach to business and investing has earned him both admiration and criticism. His strategies often involve buying undervalued companies, restructuring them, and selling them at a profit – a process he refers to as "bankruptcy-plus." Despite the controversies that have surrounded him, Ross continues to be a significant figure in the world of finance. His influential career serves as a testament to the power of strategic thinking and the ability to capitalize on opportunities in times of economic distress.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"I don't make predictions and declarations. I try to do what works."

Wilbur Ross, in this quote, emphasizes his practical approach towards decision-making, distancing himself from speculative practices that rely on predictions and declarations. Instead, he focuses on implementing strategies that have proven effective, preferring action over rhetoric or prophecy.


"Business school is a place that teaches you how to count the money left on the table."

This quote by Wilbur Ross suggests that business schools focus on teaching students techniques for maximizing profits, but often overlook the importance of identifying and seizing additional opportunities or potential gains – sometimes referred to as "leaving money on the table." In other words, they may equip you with skills to manage your resources effectively, but may not always emphasize the need to expand your vision or think creatively to capture more value. This could lead to a narrow focus and missed chances for greater success in business.


"The art of business deals is just like the art of diplomacy – where it’s about compromise, giving and taking."

This quote by Wilbur Ross emphasizes that effective business negotiation shares similarities with diplomatic negotiations. Both require a balance between compromise, giving and taking, in order to reach mutually beneficial agreements. It implies that success often depends on the ability to understand and accommodate the interests of all parties involved, while also maintaining one's own objectives. This understanding can foster long-term partnerships, cooperation, and overall growth for all involved.


"Success in investment involves making a series of correct decisions about an uncertain future."

Wilbur Ross's quote emphasizes that success in investment is not solely reliant on a single, perfectly accurate prediction about the future. Instead, it requires a consistent and effective process of making well-informed decisions about various uncertainties in the market. The key to success lies in the ability to navigate the inherent unpredictability of the financial world by gathering accurate information, analyzing trends, and making sound judgments based on these factors. In essence, success in investment is a result of a well-crafted decision-making process in an environment where future outcomes remain uncertain.


"Bankruptcy courts are the ultimate truth serum. If you're telling the truth, then you'll emerge from bankruptcy court OK. If not, you won't."

Wilbur Ross' quote suggests that the process of bankruptcy court serves as a means to expose any financial misstatements or dishonesty, as it provides a transparent environment for assessing the truth about a company's debts and assets. If a company has been truthful in its dealings, it can expect to reorganize and emerge from bankruptcy in a favorable position. Conversely, any misrepresentation of financial facts will likely lead to an unfavorable outcome during bankruptcy proceedings.


I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with a bank being big. In fact, there are some good arguments about universality of geography that in theory, if you have all your eggs in one little community, and some big employer goes out, that could be your downfall.

- Wilbur Ross

Big, Some, Universality, Argument

I still like TIPS (Treasury inflation-protected securities), and I think a big opportunity is coming in the municipal bond market.

- Wilbur Ross

Think, Big, Big Opportunity, Tips

I think there's a big difference between the impact of trade agreements on corporate America and the impact on Mr. and Mrs. America. Corporate America has adjusted to them by investing lots of capital offshore... What we're doing is we're exporting jobs and importing products instead of exporting products and keeping jobs.

- Wilbur Ross

Doing, Big, Capital, Exporting

The problem with regional trade agreements is you get picked apart by the first country. Then you negotiate with the second country. You get picked apart. And you go with the third one. You get picked apart again.

- Wilbur Ross

Country, Negotiate, Regional, Picked

I think what we have to do is figure out how to make sure we get the benefits of improved technology and yet cope with the dislocation that it will inevitably produce in certain industries.

- Wilbur Ross

Think, Benefits, Dislocation, Inevitably

To me, the most terrifying form of warfare would be if there was some simultaneous cyber attack on our grid, on the banking system, and on our transportation system. That would be quite a devastating thing, and yet in theory, absent some real protective measures, that could happen.

- Wilbur Ross

Some, Terrifying, Our, Simultaneous

I think at the end of the day, the real sick man of Europe is liable to turn out to be France, not Greece, not Portugal, not Spain, not Italy. The reason is France is very uncompetitive to begin with on a global scale, and the measures that Hollande has been putting in have been very, very negative from the point of view of economic growth.

- Wilbur Ross

Reason, Spain, Very, Portugal

The reality is if something were to happen that cost China jobs - like, if they upwardly revalued the currency a lot - those jobs aren't going to come back to the U.S. They would go to Vietnam; they would go to Thailand. They would go to whatever country was the lowest cost.

- Wilbur Ross

Country, Back, Lot, Thailand

Enforcement is a very important part of the administration strategy. We think that even our friendly nations should live by the rules, and if they don't, we will intend to enforce things against them.

- Wilbur Ross

Think, Will, Very, Intend

Each weekend I play at least one and maybe two sets of tennis a day. My doubles team was in the finals recently at my tennis club in Palm Beach and lost a tiebreaker after a three-hour match. I must confess, by the end of the three hours, I was relieved it was over.

- Wilbur Ross

Play, Palm, Maybe, Doubles

Absent some international interruption, there's no real justification for oil being more than $90 or $100 a barrel.

- Wilbur Ross

More, Some, Barrel, Interruption

I think partly the decline in the peso was due to worry about renegotiation of NAFTA, but I think we also need to think about some other mechanisms for making the peso/dollar exchange rate a bit more stable.

- Wilbur Ross

Worry, Think, Some, Exchange Rate

Ships are a strange kind of commodity because they're very lumpy, very big individual units, but they're commodities.

- Wilbur Ross

Big, Very, Commodity, Ships

There's trade, there's sensible trade, and there's dumb trade.

- Wilbur Ross

Dumb, Trade, Sensible

I believe if we and the Mexicans make a very sensible trade agreement, the Mexican peso will recover quite a lot.

- Wilbur Ross

Agreement, Very, Recover, Sensible

I'm a very big proponent of cloud. We've used it a lot in private sector, and as far as we can tell, it is not only more efficient, it's probably also more secure for lots of very complicated technical reasons. I think it's a very important thing for government to do, and also to have systems that talk to each other.

- Wilbur Ross

Big, Private, Very, Proponent

Barring some national security concern, I see no valid reason to keep peer-reviewed research from the public. To be clear, by 'peer review,' I mean scientific review and not a political filter.

- Wilbur Ross

Reason, Some, Scientific, Filter

The fundamentals are the U.S. is going to end up being a net exporter of natural gas. That's going to be wonderful to help our balance of payments, reduce our dependence on a lot of countries that aren't so crazy about us, and change many, many parts of what goes on here.

- Wilbur Ross

Fundamentals, Here, Payments, Exporter

China is the world's biggest exporter, but they're also the people with one of the highest tariffs on imports in the whole world. That seems a little bit oxymoronic.

- Wilbur Ross

Imports, Also, Whole, Exporter

Part of the reason why I'm supporting Trump is that I think we need a more radical, new approach to government - at least in the U.S. - from what we've had before.

- Wilbur Ross

Think, Reason, New, Supporting

If you want to do something to destroy consumer spending, just eat away at the middle class because the other problem we have is the structural problem of middle class America.

- Wilbur Ross

Middle, Other, Away, Consumer

If you add up all the promises any politician makes, the math doesn't work. Hillary Clinton's math doesn't work; Donald's math probably doesn't work. I think you have to listen to their campaign pitches more as symbolic, more as metaphors.

- Wilbur Ross

I Think, Clinton, Donald, Promises

If you add up all the promises any politicians makes, the math doesn't work.

- Wilbur Ross

Work, Add, Makes, Promises

Shipping has a great oversupply of vessels that came from over-ordering a few years back. We think 2014 may be when it turns around.

- Wilbur Ross

Think, Back, May, Shipping

Mexico has 44 treaties with other countries that make it very advantageous to do international shipping from Mexico rather than from the United States. Believe it or not, Mexico has better treaties with the rest of the world than the United States does.

- Wilbur Ross

Rest, United States, Very, Shipping

Mexico has 44 treaties with other countries that make it very advantageous to do international shipping from Mexico rather than from the United States.

- Wilbur Ross

Other, United States, Very, Shipping

The way we'll get more jobs is by creating new industries, new companies, businesses that are higher tech and therefore can compete.

- Wilbur Ross

New, Compete, Tech, Businesses

We'll be aggressive on trade because we know that deals that have been made historically have resulted in the great loss of manufacturing jobs, a great amount of closed manufacturing businesses. We don't want that to continue.

- Wilbur Ross

Been, Resulted, Amount, Businesses

Confrontational things, admission of error, admission of defeat, restructuring, laying people off - those are not American ideals.

- Wilbur Ross

American, Ideals, Laying, Confrontational

One of the problems with industries that have been in relatively long-term declines is that, very often, the managements in those industries develop a kind of loser mentality. And when you ask them what's wrong with the business, they'll point to extraneous forces.

- Wilbur Ross

Been, Point, Very, Industries

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