Bessent defends ‘strategic uncertainty’ of Trump tariffs

WASHINGTON: US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday defended President Donald Trump’s tumultuous tariff policy — which has put global markets on a roller coaster — as a way of creating "strategic uncertainty" that gives Washington the upper hand.

Since returning to the presidency in January, Trump has slapped 10% tariffs on most US trading partners and a separate 145% levy on many products from China.

Beijing has responded with 125% tariffs of its own on US goods.

Dozens of countries face a 90-day deadline expiring in July to strike an agreement with Washington and avoid higher, country-specific rates.

"In game theory, it’s called strategic uncertainty, so you’re not going to tell the person on the other side of the negotiation where you’re going to end up," Bessent told ABC’s "This Week" news programme.

"Nobody is better at creating this leverage than President Trump," the treasury secretary added.

"He’s shown the high tariffs, and here’s the stick. This is where the tariffs can go. And the carrot is, come to us. Take off your tariffs. Take off your non-tariff trade barriers. Stop manipulating your currency. Stop subsidising labor and capital, and then we can talk."

Despite Trump saying that there are many deals on the table, details have been scant, and when pressed for clarification, Bessent dodged, only saying some negotiations were "moving along very well, especially with the Asian countries."

For now, Washington has prioritised discussions with key allies like Japan, South Korea and Switzerland.

Trump said in a recent interview with Time magazine that Chinese President Xi Jinping had called him to discuss trade between the world’s top two economies, though Beijing again said on Saturday that no trade talks had been held.

Bessent suggested that China might deny ongoing talks because "they’re playing to a different audience."

On NBC’s "Meet the Press," Secretary of State Marco Rubio refused to be drawn on whether Trump and Xi had spoken, emphasising only that it was overall a "high-stakes negotiation."

The president suggested on Sunday on his Truth Social platform that because of his tariffs policy, "massive numbers of jobs are already being created, with new plants and factories currently being built or planned."

Trump told Time that he would announce deals with US trading partners in the next few weeks.