U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that the relationship with China is complicated and stressed it is up to China to de-escalate, as they sell five times more to the U.S. than the U.S. sells to them. He also noted that China's tariff exemptions indicate the country wants a de-escalation on trade.
In addition, Bessent said that negotiations with Asian trading partners are going very well, mentioning that India might be among the first countries to finalise a trade deal. He added that the U.S. has had substantial discussions with Japanese allies on trade and that Europeans are panicked about the strength of the euro.
According to Bessent, 17 important trading partners have made very good proposals to avoid U.S. tariffs.