Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the United States is leveraging its trade strategy to bring manufacturing back home, arguing that current tariff policies are designed not just to raise revenue but to incentivise domestic production and job creation.Speaking exclusively on CNBC’s “Squawk Box”, Bessent emphasised that the broader goal behind the rising US tariffs, particularly those imposed on China, is to reshape global trade dynamics and reindustrialise America.
“If we put up a tariff wall, the ultimate goal would be to bring jobs back to the US,” Bessent said. “In the meantime, we will be collecting substantial tariffs.”
He explained that as tariffs generate revenue in the short term, the long-term objective is to stimulate investment in US-based manufacturing.“If we’re successful, tariffs would be a melting ice cube because you’re taking in the revenues as the manufacturing facilities are built in the US, and there should be some level of symmetry between the taxes we begin taking in with the new industry from the payroll taxes as the tariffs decline,” he noted.
“If we put up a tariff wall, the ultimate goal would be to bring jobs back to the US,” Bessent said. “In the meantime, we will be collecting substantial tariffs.”
He explained that as tariffs generate revenue in the short term, the long-term objective is to stimulate investment in US-based manufacturing.“If we’re successful, tariffs would be a melting ice cube because you’re taking in the revenues as the manufacturing facilities are built in the US, and there should be some level of symmetry between the taxes we begin taking in with the new industry from the payroll taxes as the tariffs decline,” he noted.
The Treasury Secretary noted that while some 70 countries have reached out to the US to begin negotiations, China remains defiant. Still, Bessent remained optimistic that the pressure created by tariffs would eventually lead to favourable trade agreements and a resurgence of US-based production.
(Edited by : Ajay Vaishnav)
