The Treasury secretary and Commerce Sec. Howard Lutnick both seem to view Aug. 1’s steep tariffs as added leverage in talks that will continue past that date.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested that implementing a « higher tariff level » on countries would put more « pressure on those countries to come with better agreements. »
« The important thing » with President Donald Trump’s trade negotiations, « is the quality of the deal, not the timing of the deals », he told CNBC.
Trump has postponed his country-specific tariff deadline three times since his April « Liberation Day » announcement.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that implementing high tariff rates on countries starting August 1 « will put more pressure on those countries to come with better agreements. »
Bessent’s remarks suggest that he views President Donald Trump’s planned massive tariffs on top trading partners — which have been postponed until Aug. 1 — as not so much a deadline to ink deals, but as another negotiating tactic to squeeze the impacted countries to acquiesce to favorable terms for the United States.
