Englund

  The US Treasury secretary has the ear of an impulsive president—and nervous investors worldwide hope it stays that way. “If we had said, ‘Here are the numbers. These are the maximum tariff levels if you don’t retaliate, but we’re open for negotiation.’” On Air Force One that Sunday in April, Bessent says, he proposed an immediate tariff pullback to defuse the crisis. But the president was undeterred. He wanted to scare America’s trading partners to the bargaining table.  “Let’s let it run a couple more days,” he told Bessent. “Do not say we’re willing to negotiate.” It wasn’t until a few hours before the levies were supposed to kick in that Trump finally relented.  The story everyone on Wall Street wants to believe is that Bessent, one of their own, persuaded a reluctant Trump to capitulate on tariffs  TACO, for “Trump always chickens out.”  Bessent insists that’s wrong. “The market did not force him,” he says. “He has a higher risk tolerance than I do.” Bloom...

  In January, the Congressional Budget Office forecast that chronic federal deficits would add almost $22 trillion to America’s sovereign obligations over the next decade,  pushing net interest payments to 4.1% of gross domestic product in 2035, from 3.2% in 2025.  The obvious solution: Spend less, increase tax revenue or both Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has advocated a different approach: shifting issuance of government debt toward short-term bills. If pursued aggressively, Bessent’s idea would signal a significant departure from the US practice of “regular and predictable” debt management.  The moment of truth might come on July 30, when the Treasury is set to announce its quarterly refunding plan. It's hard to see how doing so would be worth the risk. Bill Dudley Bloomberg 15 July 2025 https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2025-07-15/bessent-s-interest-rate-bet-could-be-a-big-loser Bessent

  Bessent: dollar-denominated stablecoins vehicle for strengthening its role in global finance https://englundmacro.blogspot.com/2025/07/bessent-dollar-denominated-stablecoins.html Scott Bessent  US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent spent the past 40 years studying economic history. Now, as Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Treasury Department, he has the chance to make his mark on it. Trump’s choice to lead the Treasury Department Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent; den vuxne i Trumps rum https://englundmacro.blogspot.com/2025/04/treasury-secretary-scott-bessent-den.html America’s chief bond salesman, tasked with maintaining investors’ faith in the $29 trillion Treasury market.  He’ll want to avoid any repeat of Tim Geithner’s now infamous 2008 Cash Room speech, which led to a split-screen CNBC image of President Barack Obama’s newly minted Treasury chief haltingly delivering his first speech — devoid of details — alongside a rolling list of stocks dropping with each word h...