US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday that the US budget deficit during Donald Trump‘s presidency has most likely already reached its peak.
“We will focus all our attention on this,” said Bessent in an exclusive interview with Sara Eisen from CNBC the day after his department announced a massive buyback of government debt.
Last week, the Treasury Department reported that the monthly US budget deficit in July exceeded 432 billion dollars — the highest figure in over five years. According to the report, the cumulative deficit since the beginning of the fiscal year has risen to nearly 1.8 trillion dollars, surpassing the figure for the same period last year.
Growth of national debt
This week, the Treasury Department also reported that the US national debt, which finances the budget deficit, has reached a new record of 40 trillion dollars. Over the past decade, the total debt has more than doubled, increasing concerns about the country’s financial situation.
Bessent noted that Bessent, Donald Trump and Office of Management and Budget director Russell Vought are among the federal officials working on fiscal consolidation measures. According to Bessent, these measures could save several hundred billion dollars.
Challenges for tariff revenues
The White House is considering broad and high tariffs for trading partners as a source of additional revenue that could help reduce the national debt. However, these measures have repeatedly faced legal obstacles. Most notably, the US Supreme Court struck down a significant portion of the imposed tariffs.
Meanwhile, Bessent expects that tariff revenues this year will be roughly equal to those projected for 2025, following the reimposition of tariffs despite legal difficulties. According to him, this time these funds will not have to be returned to companies.
“There is nothing magical about the figure 40 trillion. We will be able to get out of this situation through economic growth,” said Bessent.
Source: CNBC
