US President Donald Trump had sent global markets roiling in April after announcing sweeping tariffs on nearly all imports from more than 180 countries. The decision was eventually put on a three month hiatus after it threatened to overhaul the global economy and lead to broader trade wars. Efforts to finalise trading plans with partner countries have been ramped up over the past few weeks — with mere days now left for the July 9 negotiating window to close. Trump has teased several ‘imminent trading deals’ over the past few days while senior members of his government hinted at additional time for talks after the Wednesday deadline. But with little to show officially for the past three months, a White House insider has now suggested that the entire process might be ‘fake’.
“Trump knows the most interesting part of his presidency is the tariff conversation. I find it hard to believe he’s going to surrender it that easily. It’s all fake. There’s no deadline. It’s a self-imposed landmark in this theatrical show, and that’s where we are,” a person close to the White House told Politico.
Meanwhile US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent predicted several big announcements in the coming days — a day after Trump revealed that he had already signed 12 letters that would be sent on Monday. Bessent told CNN that the POTUS would also send out letters to 100 smaller countries with whom the US doesn’t have much trade. These missives would notify the yet-to-be-named countries that they fould face the higher tariff rates that were outlined on April 2.
‘We can do whatever we want’
Trump has set off a global trade war that has upended financial markets and sent policymakers scrambling to guard their economies after taking over as President. He had announced a 10% base tariff rate and additional amounts for most countries on April 2 — with some ranging as high as 50%. The news roiled financial markets, prompting the president to suspend all but the 10% base rate for 90 days – until July 9 – to allow more time for negotiations to secure deals.
“We can do whatever we want. We could extend it, we could make it shorter. I’d like to make it shorter. I’d like to just send letters out to everybody: ‘Congratulations, you’re paying 25%’. We’ll look at how a country treats us, are they good, are they not so good…some countries we don’t care…we’ll just send a high number out,” the President said last week while talking about the deadline.
His top trade advisors appear to agree — with a top official telling CBS on Sunday that Trump would decide when it was time to give up on negotiations. Stephen Miran, the chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, also opined that countries negotiating in good faith and making concessions could “sort of, get the date rolled”.
“The United States is always willing to talk to everybody about everything. There are deadlines, and there are things that are close, so maybe things will push back past the deadline or maybe they won’t. In the end the president is going to make that judgment,” said Kevin Hassett – the director of the White House National Economic Council.
(With inputs from agencies)