Bessent says Trump won’t be deterred by falling stocks

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent insisted Wednesday that the United States will not change its position in trade negotiations with China due to stock market volatility.

“We will not negotiate because the stock market is down” and we will not hesitate to take strong action against Beijing for that reason, Bessent said in an exclusive interview at CNBC’s Invest in America forum.

“We will negotiate because we are doing what is best for the United States economically,” he said.

Bessent overnight dismissed a Wall Street Journal report that China “expects the prospect of further market collapse to ultimately force (President Donald Trump) to negotiate.”

Chinese President Xi Jinping is “betting that the U.S. economy won’t be able to absorb a prolonged trade conflict” with China, the Journal reported, citing sources close to Beijing’s decision-making process.

The Cabinet Secretary called the report “terrible,” accusing the newspaper of bowing to “dictations of the CCP.”

His comments come as markets have been roiled in recent days as the state of ongoing trade negotiations between the world’s largest economies appeared to falter.

Stocks fell Friday after Trump threatened to raise tariffs on Chinese imports in retaliation for new export controls China imposed on rare earth minerals.

Trump appeared to soften his tone over the weekend, causing the market to rebound on Monday. Major stock indexes rebounded during volatile trading on Tuesday; The S&P 500 plunged before the close of the session after Trump issued a new trade threat against China, accusing it of economic hostility for not buying American soybeans.

Bessent added Wednesday that while Trump “likes a high stock market,” he “believes the rising stock market is the result of good policies.”

“These are the policies that we are talking about here today, in terms of an investment boom,” Bessent said, highlighting increased investment in artificial intelligence.