Bessent Warns on ‘Detox Period’ for Economy, Touts Trump ‘Call’
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that the US economy may see some disruption as the Trump administration shifts the basis for growth away from the government and toward the private sector.
“Could we be seeing this economy that we inherited starting to roll a bit? Sure,” Bessent said in an interview Friday on CNBC. “Look, there’s going to be a natural adjustment as we move away from public spending.”
A number of economic indicators have suggested a slowdown in growth, with a key gauge of manufacturing having tilted toward stagnation in March and consumer confidence declining. Bessent argues that the expansion under the Biden administration was artificially supported by government spending.
“The market and the economy have just become hooked, and we’ve become addicted to this government spending,” Bessent said. “There’s going to be a detox period.”
Asked about whether President Donald Trump would shift his policy moves in order to prop up the stock market, the Treasury chief said that there is no such Trump “put,” as stock analysts say.
“There’s no put,” he said. “The Trump call on the upside is, if we have good policies, then the markets will go up.”
Source : Bloomberg
