(April 8): US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said there is potential for advantageous trade deals with major US trading partners, as foreign nations appeal to Washington for negotiations in the wake of President Donald Trump’s steep reciprocal tariffs.

“I have seen the call list at the White House, and it’s substantial — we were having a discussion last night about which countries to prioritise,” Bessent said on CNBC on Tuesday. “I think you are going to see some very large countries with large trade deficits come forward very quickly.”

The Treasury chief reiterated that Trump will be directly involved in the talks, and suggested that the nature of the agreements would be something different than standard trade deals that focus on bringing down barriers to commerce. He flagged a potential energy investment deal in Alaska that he said could be attractive, because it would involve foreign investment, a boost to US employment, and an increase in exports rolled into one. Bessent also indicated not all the new tariffs may be rolled back.

“If they come to the table with solid proposals, I think we can end up with some good deals,” Bessent said of US trading partners. “And part of the calculus on that may be that some part of the tariffs stay on.”

Trump has “maximum negotiating leverage right here, right now”, Bessent said, with the reciprocal tariffs set to kick in on Wednesday.

“We will see what our trading partners offer” as the negotiations get going, he said. “For instance, there is talk of a big energy deal in Alaska, where the Japanese and perhaps the [South] Koreans, perhaps the Taiwanese, would provide — [which] would take a lot of the offtake,” he said, apparently referring to the potential for the three economies to purchase the resultant output.

They could also “provide financing for the deal, so that could be an alternative for them to come forward with that”, Bessent said. “Because not only would that provide a lot of American jobs, but it would narrow the trade deficit.”

On Monday, Bessent said Japan would be prioritised, thanks to having come early to the US in seeking negotiations, and because of its importance as an American military as well as economic ally.

Bessent also said that “I wasn’t involved in the calculations of the numbers” for the reciprocal tariffs unveiled last week, which kick in on Wednesday. By contrast, he said that he and National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett “have the pen for the administration” with regard to talks with Congress on Trump’s tax-cut package.

Uploaded by Tham Yek Lee