More than 50 nations in contact with White House to start trade talks following tariff blow

More than 50 nations have approached the White House to start trade talks, according to a top economic adviser to US President Donald Trump. This comes as American officials try to defend the new tariffs that have caused global tension and market unrest.

Speaking on ABC News’ This Week, Kevin Hassett, Director of the US National Economic Council, dismissed claims that the tariffs were a tactic by Trump to crash the markets and force the US Federal Reserve to lower interest rates.

“I got a report from the USTR last night (the office of the US trade representative) that more than 50 countries have reached out to the president to begin a negotiation. But they are doing that because they understand that they bear a lot of the tariff,” Hassett said.

He added there was no “political coercion” of the central bank.

Speculations about Trump’s pressure on the Federal Reserve were made when the US president shared a video on his Truth Social post where he signalled that his tariffs were meant to spur a bloodbath in the stock market to force the central bank to lower interest rates.

‘No reason to anticipate recession’

In a separate interview, Hassett dismissed concerns around the bloodbath in the stock market and downplayed projections of a recession.

He said there was no reason to anticipate a recession following Trump’s tariff move.

Trump shook global markets last Wednesday when he announced sweeping tariffs on US imports. The move triggered immediate retaliation from China and raised fears of a global trade war and even a possible recession.

On Sunday morning talk shows, senior Trump officials tried to present the tariffs as a smart way to reset America’s role in global trade. They described the economic turmoil as temporary side effects.

Meanwhile, US stocks took a sharp hit, falling about 10 per cent in just two days, as investors were caught off guard by the scale and aggression of the new trade policy.

Countries rush to placate US administration

Following the tariff blow, various nations have reportedly approached the Trump administration to strike trade deals. CNN earlier reported that India, Vietnam and Israel had launched negotiations with Trump.

Then, on Friday, Vietnam — which has been hit with a 46 per cent tariff — announced it was reducing its tariffs on US goods to zero. Trump made the announcement on his social media platform, Truth Social.

While some officials argue that the tariffs are a deliberate attempt by the president to disrupt global trade patterns, Trump told reporters on Thursday that he believes the tariffs strengthen his ability to negotiate trade deals with other world leaders.

“Every country has called us. That’s the beauty of what we do — we put ourselves in the driver’s seat. The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have,” Trump said.

(With inputs from agencies)