Trump tariffs: Leading economists dismiss concerns about the US recession and claim that more than 50 nations are seeking talks

Top economic officials for US President Donald Trump defended the broad tariffs and dismissed investors' concerns about recession and inflation. They boldly asserted that a boom was imminent and made no excuses for the market turbulence caused by the global tariffs.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump's economic team made the rounds on Sunday morning political shows, promoting tariffs and downplaying the likelihood of a recession.

Following massive stock market declines around the world, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and others blasted Trump on Sunday, saying he would stick to his tariffs plan regardless of what the markets did. On CBS's Face the Nation, Lutnick declared that Trump "announced it and he wasn't kidding" and that the tariffs were on the way.

Even though JPMorgan economists stated on Friday that they now anticipate the US to enter a recession this year, Bessent told NBC's Meet the Press with Kristen Welker, "I see no reason that we have to price in a recession."

White House trade czar Peter Navarro said investors should trust Trump's resolve, even if levels shift via negotiation, as he shared videos of himself playing golf in Florida. More than 50 nations have contacted the administration, but any negotiations will take time, Bessent said.

According to a report he received from the US trade representative, Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, stated on ABC that more than 50 nations have contacted Trump and his team to begin tariff negotiations.

"They have a lengthy history of being poor performers. Bloomberg cited Bessent as stating, "And it's not the kind of thing you can negotiate away in days or weeks." The US must first assess if the offerings made by other nations were "believable."

"We will need to see the way forward. Because, you know, you can't just start over after poor behavior for 20, 30, 40, or 50 years.

Markets lost $5.4 trillion in value on the two days after Trump announced tariffs on April 2, pushing the S&P 500 to its lowest point in 11 months.

In a Saturday social media post, Trump exhorted his followers to "HANG TOUGH, it won't be easy, but the end result will be historic."

Bessent, a former hedge fund manager who amassed his wealth at Soros Fund Management and through his own Key Square Group, downplayed the slaughter in markets he called "organic animals."

He claimed that Donald Trump is always undervalued by the market.

According to Navarro, the current stock market slump would eventually give way to a booming market. He stated on Fox News' Sunday Morning Futures that "we will find a bottom in this market quickly." "By the end of this term, we will easily reach 50,000 on the Dow."

Others outside the Trump administration were less optimistic.

According to former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, the selloff last week was the fourth-largest two-day move since World War II, following the market meltdown in 1987, the financial crisis in 2008, and the Covid epidemic in 2020.

Summers, a professor at Harvard University and a paid contributor to Bloomberg TV, wrote on X that "a drop of this magnitude signals that there's likely to be trouble ahead, and people ought to just be very cautious." The remarks from the Trump administration were made the day after an extra 10% tax on all US imports went into force on Saturday. On Wednesday, further customized duties of up to 50% are scheduled to be implemented on imports from about 60 nations. US import taxes will reach their highest point in almost a century as a result of the planned levies. The remarks from the Trump administration were made the day after an extra 10% tax on all US imports went into force on Saturday. On Wednesday, further customized duties of up to 50% are scheduled to be implemented on imports from about 60 nations. US import taxes will reach their highest point in almost a century as a result of the planned levies.