WASHINGTON: The United States is close to clinching several trade deals ahead of a July 9 deadline when higher tariffs were due to kick in, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday, predicting several big announcements in coming days.
Bessent told CNN’s “State of the Union” that President Donald Trump would also send out letters to 100 smaller countries with whom the US doesn’t have much trade, notifying them that they would face higher tariff rates first set on April 2 and then suspended until July 9.
“President Trump’s going to be sending letters to some of our trading partners saying that if you don’t move things along, then on August 1 you will boomerang back to your April 2 tariff level. So I think we’re going to see a lot of deals very quickly,” Bessent told CNN.
Since taking office, Trump has set off a global trade war that has upended financial markets and sent policymakers scrambling to guard their economies, including through deals with the US and other countries. Trump on April 2 announced a 10 per cent base tariff rate and additional amounts for most countries, some ranging as high as 50 per cent.