Treasury Secretary still claims that the Trump administration ‘inherited terrible inflation’, but says he sees signs of a slowdown
The US Treasury Secretary stated that the government is working to gradually alleviate the cost of living from 2026 onwards, combining tariff reductions on imported food and tax cuts for workers. He also said that the US president’s proposal to send payments of US$2,000 to Americans depends on Congressional approval. “We’ll see. We need legislation for that,” he told Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures program.
The statements were made two days after Trump announced tariff cuts for meat, coffee, cocoa and fruit.
The measure affects Brazilian exporters who had been hit by 10% reciprocal tariffs in April and an additional 40% surcharge in August. The tariff is pointed out by the American press as one of the factors causing the government’s political wear and tear in recent state elections.
Trump said he intends to use tariff revenue to finance the $2,000 checks. The viability is disputed. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates the cost at about $600 billion, double the projected tariff revenue for 2025. As of September, the United States had collected $195 billion in tariffs; Economists expect about $300 billion next year.
Bessent refuted criticism that the cuts were an emergency response to rising prices. According to him, the reductions announced on Friday (14) are the result of months of negotiations with countries in Central and South America. “This didn’t come out of nowhere. We’ve been working on it since day one,” he said.
The secretary also commented on the forecast that the price of ground beef could reach US$10 per pound (around R$110 per kilogram) by the third quarter of 2026. He stated that part of the pressure comes from the reappearance of a disease that has already been eliminated in the United States. To avoid health risks, the government suspended imports of beef from Brazil. Bessent linked the problem to the entry of animals brought by immigrants from South America.
When dealing with inflation, Bessent stated that the Trump administration “inherited terrible inflation”, but said he saw signs of a slowdown. According to him, energy prices and interest rates have already fallen. The strategy now is to combine a gradual drop in indices with an increase in disposable income.
The secretary highlighted tax exemptions on tips, overtime and US Social Security benefits, in addition to the possibility of deducting interest on financing cars produced in the United States. “I would expect that in the first two quarters the inflation curve will slope downwards and real income will accelerate substantially,” he said.
He said when those two lines cross, Americans should see an improvement in their household budget.
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
