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Donald Trump has been slammed for using the official Twitter account of the President of the United States to comment on his daughter's business interests.

The billionaire attacked "terrible" department store chain Nordstrom for not reinstating Ivanka's clothing line in its next season.

He posted the tweet from his private Twitter account - but it was then retweeted from POTUS, an official account run through the White House.

The Twitter handle has more than 15million followers and Barack Obama was forced to give it up when he left office last month.

"My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom," the President complained. "She is a great person - always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!"

The close mingling of official and personal business comes despite Trump claiming he would distance himself from his commercial interests.

It prompted fury from figures including film director Ron Howard, who tweeted: "It trivializes the office and suggests he prioritizes family enterprise & monetary gain."

Democratic Senator Bob Casey tweeted the comment to the Office of Government Ethics.

Former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer tweeted: "This is something a father would say. It's not the type of thing a President of the United States should say."

Shares of the retailer fell 0.7% after the president's criticism, but later recovered to trade up 0.2%.

One Twitter user suggested he sent the tweet during his daily Intelligence Briefing - it was sent at 10.51am and the briefing reportedly started at 10.30am.

(Image: REUTERS)

In a statement last week, Nordstrom said it routinely cuts brands each year and that the decision to pass on the Ivanka Trump brand had been based on its performance.

A day after Nordstrom's statement, luxury retailer Neiman Marcus Group also said it had stopped selling Ivanka Trump's jewelry line on its website and a store in New Jersey, according to Yahoo News.

Since winning the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 8, Trump has targeted specific companies on Twitter.

But this is his first tweet criticizing a business tied to his family since the victory.