Bessent Promises 'Technical Details' of Trade Deal With South Korea by Next Week
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that trade negotiations with South Korea are "moving faster" than expected and that technical details could be available as soon as next week.
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Bessent described the meeting with Korean trade representatives on the morning of April 24 as "very successful," during a press briefing in the Oval Office after a meeting between President Donald Trump and the Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre. "We may be moving faster than I thought, and we will be talking technical terms as early as next week as we reach an agreement, an understanding as soon as next week," he said.
He gave an indication of what the White House is looking for during trade negotiations, saying "the South Koreans came early, they came with their A-game, and we will see if they follow through on that."
Trump also spoke glowingly of the U.S. relationship with Norway, saying "I think we'll have no problem whatsoever with Norway," when asked if he thought there would be a trade agreement with the country.
He said that the relationship should stay the way that it is before adding, "Well, if they want to give us some additional concessions, that's OK. But you can't do much better."
Trump said that his administration is making "great inroads and great deals" with other countries during the pause on his reciprocal tariffs, but warned that if negotiations do not happen quickly, "we are going to at some point just set prices for deals." Countries that have treated the U.S. "very unfairly," he said, "they'll be tariffed higher than others."