It appears our previous understanding of Treasury Secretary Bessent’s recent remarks was accurate…
According to The Wall Street Journal, President Trump is set to issue a comprehensive memorandum today that instructs federal agencies to assess trade policies and review U.S. trade relationships with China and neighboring countries. However, there will be no immediate implementation of new tariffs on his first day in office, as some trading partners had feared.
The Wall Street Journal obtained a summary of the memo and discussed it with Trump’s advisors.
A senior policy advisor for Trump described the memo as a strategic outline of the president’s trade agenda, indicating a more thoughtful approach to the issue that was central to his campaign.
The memo lays the groundwork for potential future executive actions on trade, the advisor confirmed.
As a result of this development, the dollar experienced a sharp decline…
…and S&P futures saw a notable increase.
Furthermore, the memo instructs economic agencies to concentrate on specific trade topics, such as addressing consistent trade imbalances and currency manipulation. Trump specifically called out China and Vietnam in his previous term for these issues, as well as the fight against counterfeit goods.
Lastly, the memo prompts agencies to explore the possibility of establishing an “External Revenue Service” – a new federal entity proposed by Trump to manage tariff revenue. The precise distinctions between this agency and the long-standing U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which currently handles this responsibility, have yet to be clarified.
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