One of Australia’s richest men, Anthony Pratt, has announced a US$5 billion (A$7.8 billion) investment in manufacturing in the United States to create 5,000 jobs.
Patt’s privately-owned Pratt Industries said the announcement had been made in advance of U.S. President Donald Trump’s ‘Invest in America’ event at the White House in Washington.
Pratt, who is ranked the eighth wealthiest person in Australia with a net worth estimated at US$8.7 billion by Forbes magazine, said the investment would create jobs in states including Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Arizona.
“To make America great again we need to make in America again,” Pratt said in a press release.
He is the owner and executive Chairman of Pratt Industries, the largest privately held recycling paper and corrugated box manufacturer, which has 70 factories in more than 25 states.
The Georgia-based company was founded in the United States 30 years ago and operates assets including 27 converting plants, 21 corrugating plants, 19 recycling facilities and six paper mills.
Pratt inherited Visy, the Australian packaging and recycling business founded by his grandfather Leon in 1945, after the passing of his father Richard in 2009, but has expanded its operations significantly, particularly in the United States.
He moved permanently to the United States in late 2024.
