Bessent: "Tariffs do not fuel inflation"

JH Kim

Summary

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said tariffs are not inherently inflationary.
Secretary Bessent said tariffs may be a factor in some price adjustments but are not a driver of broad-based price pressures.
He added that tariff policy is a tool to adjust the trade structure and strengthen industrial competitiveness, and is separate from price stability.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said tariffs do not lead to inflation.

According to the economics breaking-news account Walter Bloomberg on the 4th (local time), Secretary Bessent said in public remarks that "tariffs are not inherently inflationary," adding that "claims that tariffs lead to a sustained rise in prices are not consistent with the facts."

He explained that while tariffs can be a factor in price adjustments for certain items, broad-based price increases require multiple factors to work together, including monetary policy, wage growth and the structure of demand. In other words, tariffs alone do not generate economy-wide inflationary pressure.

He also added that "tariff policy is a tool to adjust trade structures and strengthen industrial competitiveness" and "should be viewed as a separate policy domain from price stability."

Bessent’s remarks come amid recent market concerns that US external tariff policy could stoke rising prices. The Treasury has maintained that caution is warranted against drawing a direct link between tariffs and inflation.