With David Lawder and Lawrence Delevingne
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Scott Bessent, US President Donald Trump's choice to head the Treasury Department, vowed on Wednesday to ensure the dollar remains the world's reserve currency as he outlined a vision for an “economic golden age”. new”.
Bessent, who faces questioning before the US Senate Finance Committee on Thursday, said in prepared testimony that the new Trump administration must prioritize productive investment that grows the economy over “wasteful spending that drives inflation. “
“We must secure supply chains that are vulnerable to strategic competitors, and we must carefully apply sanctions as part of a whole-of-government approach to addressing our national security imperatives ,” Bessent said in the comments.
“And crucially, we must ensure that the US dollar remains the world's reserve currency.”
Bessent, a hedge fund manager who has advocated for Trump's plans to impose significantly higher tariffs on imports, did not single out China in his comments, but has previously said that China's trade practices have to destroy American industry.
Trump has threatened a 60% tax on imports from China and a 10% tax on global imports. Trump has also said he would impose 25% duties on imports from Canada and Mexico, so that those two countries stop the flow of illegal immigrants and fentanyl into the United States.
A $4 TRILLION tax hike
Bessent also said the administration and Congress must “make permanent” the expiring provisions in Trump's 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
“If Congress does not act, Americans will face the largest tax increase in history, a $4 trillion tax increase,” Bessent said.
The Trump administration and Congress must also “implement pro-growth policies to reduce the tax burden on America's manufacturers, service workers and seniors,” he said.
The latest policies refer to the Trump campaign's promise to lower the corporate tax rate to 15% from 21% for companies that manufacture products in the United States, and to increase revenue from tips and Security Social tax exemption.
Bessent said that with the support of Congress, the Trump administration could usher in a new, more equitable era of prosperity for Americans that he called “a generational opportunity to usher in a new economic golden age.”
