President-elect Donald Trump on Dec. 21 appointed Peter Navarro to head the newly formed White House National Trade Council.

Navarro, an economist and a professor, will serve as assistant to the president and director of trade and industrial policy.

The newly-formed NTC will work collaboratively with the National Security Council, National Economic Council and the Domestic Policy Council. The council's duties include advising the president on strategies in trade negotiations, coordinating with agencies to examine U.S. manufacturing capacities and the defense industrial base, and helping unemployed Americans find suitable jobs in the skilled manufacturing sector.