Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made it clear Sunday: if countries don’t strike fair trade deals by August 1, the U.S. will restore the original Trump tariff levels from April 2.
“What’s great about having President Trump on our side is he’s created maximum leverage,” Bessent told Fox News Sunday host Shannon Bream.
Bessent explained that as the July 9 grace period for trade negotiations ends, countries now face a binary choice: cut a deal, or face the full weight of the Trump tariff structure, including:
“By telling our trading partners that they could boomerang back to the April 2nd date, I think it’s really going to move things along,” Bessent said.
Several agreements are reportedly in the “home stretch”, and Trump’s take-it-or-leave-it letters have already been sent to 12 nations, warning them of the looming tariff snapback.
Powell on the Chopping Block?
The interview also comes amid rising speculation that Bessent is being eyed to replace Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who has increasingly drawn Trump’s ire over misleading testimony and questionable policy decisions.
Last week,
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