Trump likely to raise US tariff rate to 15% this week, says Bessent

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that President Donald Trump’s plan to increase a broad 10 per cent tariff rate to 15 per cent will likely be done this week. 

“That’s likely sometime this week,” Bessent said Wednesday on CNBC in response to a question about when the increase to 15 per cent would be implemented. 

Bessent’s comments offer the clearest indication yet regarding when the US will follow through on Trump’s pledge to raise tariffs.  The president last month imposed a 10 per cent universal levy after the Supreme Court invalidated most of his previous tariff regime, then quickly threatened to hike the rate to 15 per cent. 

The administration, however, let the 10 per cent charge take effect without immediately increasing it. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer last week suggested the higher rate wouldn’t be universal. The European Union expects that it won’t be subjected to the 15 per cent duty, given its framework trade agreement with Washington, according to people familiar with the matter. 

Bessent on CNBC didn’t address which trading partners the higher rate would apply to. He noted that the authority for the new duties only allows them to remain in place for 150 days without congressional approval. During that time, he said administration officials would use other legal powers to resurrect the tariff regime that had been in place prior to the high court’s ruling. 

“It’s my strong belief that the tariff rates will be back to their old rate within five months,” Bessent said. “They are very slow moving, but they are more robust,” he said of the so-called Section 301 and Section 232 tariffs that are expected to replace the invalidated duties that were implemented under an emergency law. 

US stock futures erased gains after Bessent’s comment on the higher tariff, though the S&P 500 advanced after trading opened in New York. 

Oil Market 

The Treasury chief also downplayed risks to the oil market from the US and Israeli war against Iran, saying that there’s ample global supply and that the Trump administration will take steps to support the sector. 

“I would encourage everyone to look through the noise and see where we are going on the other side of this in terms of the crude markets — the crude markets are very well supplied,” Bessent said. “There are hundreds of millions of barrels on the water away from the Gulf. But more importantly, we have a series of announcements that we’re going to be making.” 

He pointed to the previously announced plan for the US government to offer insurance for oil cargo ships when appropriate, and for the US Navy to provide safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz. 

Bessent highlighted China’s vulnerability to any cutoff of oil shipments from the Persian Gulf, saying more than 50 per cent of their energy comes from that region.  

“They’ve probably been buying 95 per cent of the Iranian crude. That’s obviously on hold right now,” he said. 

Asked about Trump’s comment on Tuesday suggesting a trade embargo with Spain, and whether the Treasury chief would be responsible for that, Bessent said, “It would be a combination effort.” He didn’t specifically comment on whether such a sanction will be enacted.