U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol as Republican lawmakers struggle to pass U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 27, 2025.
Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday that tariffs announced back in April will take effect on Aug. 1 for countries that have not reached an agreement with President Donald Trump’s administration.
“President Trump’s going to be sending letters to some of our trading partners saying that if you don’t move things along, then on August 1, you will boomerang back to your April 2 tariff level,” Bessent said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
Countries will “get a letter saying that if we have not reached an agreement, then you will go back to the April 2 level,” he said.
Bessent rejected the idea that Aug. 1 is yet another new tariff deadline, but the August date could still give trading partners more time to renegotiate tariff rates.
“We are saying this is when it’s happening, if you want to speed things up, have at it, if you want to go back to the old rate that’s your choice,” Bessent said.
In April, Trump announced a 90-day pause on the steep tariffs he had unveiled just days prior on most major trading partners. That 90-day pause is due to expire on Wednesday, sparking concern among investors and U.S. trading partners.
The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment on Bessent’s remarks.
Bessent’s comments come after Trump last week said the administration would send roughly a dozen letters to trading partners on Monday notifying them of their tariff rates effective Aug. 1.
“They’ll start to pay on August 1. The money will start to come into the United States on August 1, in pretty much all cases,” Trump told reporters on Friday.
Bessent suggested that new trade deals could be announced soon.
“I would expect to see several big announcements over the next couple of days,” he said, when asked about whether the administration is close to any deals before Wednesday.
