Trade negotiations had "nothing to do with the market," Bessent says
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday said trade negotiations can lead to "good deals," but insisted that a posture of being open to those talks had nothing to do with last week's stock market plunge.
Why it matters: The market doesn't much care about the motivations — the mere fact that the conversations are happening at all is causing stocks to surge after days of uncertainty and mounting recession fears.
Catch up quick: After a wild three days of trading that cost investors trillions of dollars, President Trump on Monday said negotiations would soon begin with Japan and other countries on the sweeping reciprocal tariffs he imposed last week.
- Politico later reported that Bessent had traveled to Florida over the weekend and urged Trump to give markets the message that there was an "end game" to the tariffs.
- They are due to take effect Wednesday.
What they're saying: "It's all President Trump's decision, and he had a view after 'Liberation Day' that we should go into quiet mode and let our partners think about the shock and awe that he presented," Bessent told CNBC.
- "Over those following few days from April 2 we had, I think we're up to 70 countries, contact the White House for how to come and negotiate," he said.
- "I would say that the negotiations are the result of the massive inflow of inbound calls to come and negotiate. It had nothing to do with the market."
By the numbers: The market likes the news, regardless.
- U.S. stock futures were up about 3% early Tuesday, matching broad 2% to 3% gains overnight across much of Europe and Asia.
- The dollar strengthened after days of weakness, and oil rose back above $60, starting to climb out of a danger zone.
What to watch: How soon those talks actually start and how long they take.
- Much as markets were mostly sideways in the weeks leading up to the tariffs, they may be somewhat on hold again if investors are waiting to see what kinds of deals are made.
- "If they come to the table with solid proposals, I think we can end up with some good deals," Bessent told CNBC.
- In the meantime, the uncertainty will affect markets, investors say.
- "We expect intraday volatility to continue, as this market tries to read the tea leaves on what the Trump administration and its top economic officials are saying," Clark Bellin, president and chief investment officer of Bellwether Wealth, said in a market note Tuesday.
