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It wasn’t something wax said, but what not said.
That is what I told the CEOs who contacted my chat with our Treasury secretary Scott Bessent earlier this week (video above). I really enjoyed my 23-minute chat with the secretary, full-stop. I learned a lot in a short period and greatly appreciated his time.
He is sober and understands the market history and the sanitary ware of the Diep-Otijsewijsts market spent a by-product of his decades in the hedge fund industry. Of course these are good qualities to have as Minister of Finance when things go to hell in a hand basket (see the big financial crisis).
But at the end of the day I got away with the idea that the cloud of uncertainty about markets is about tariff policy – an important market for the market – should remain in force in the short term. Consequently, any rallies in shares as we saw must be treated as short -lived after the recent exclusions of electronics.
Read more: The latest news and updates about Trump’s rates
In the middle of this uncertainty, the cloud is of course China. The two super powers seem like light years apart in mentioning a form of trade display.
When I asked the secretary if he had spoken with his Chinese counterpart, he replied:
‘We made an introductory call a few months ago. We have not spoken since. I’m not sure who of PRC [People’s Republic of China] will be [here] Next week – It’s a big week in Washington. It is the International Monetary Fund World Bank Week. So I know that the People’s Republic will send someone from finance, probably the PBOC, People’s Bank of China Governor. So they will be here. You know, I can come across them. We have not planned anything, “said Bessent.
Wow, bumps into a corridor? Is that true things? Not great.
Then there was a response to the question of whether tariff offers will be inked with a maximum of 130 countries by the time the 90-day break ends:
“Let’s put China aside. There are 15 large trading partners. We have reserved China. There are 14 and we are quickly on the move and setting up a process for the 14 largest trading partners, of whom most have very large deficits. So in 90 days we have done a complete document, a formal legal document and immersed,” said Besent.
However, he noted that a framework could be worked out within the break period.
