Inside tariff U-turn: Market panic, policy chaos and the man who made Trump blink

Bessent sways Trump on tariffs amid market panic and uncertainty.

Scott Bessent, a former hedge-fund manager turned Treasury Secretary, has emerged as a key figure in shaping President Trump’s trade policies. His influence over the president and his efforts to adjust the tariff strategy have drawn considerable attention. This explainer breaks down how Bessent persuaded Trump to pause the global tariffs and outlines the steps that led to the implementation of the pause.

Persuading the President

Scott Bessent had Donald Trump’s ear at a critical time. The Treasury Secretary had begun to encourage the president to pause his campaign on global tariffs, tariffs that were intended to cut trade deals and isolate rival China. On a flight Sunday to Washington from President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, Bessent advised the president to propose an “endgame.” Although Trump initially wasn’t ready to act, the situation changed quickly. As the week unfolded, a cratering stock market combined with a surprise selloff in U.S. bonds, normally a haven in times of crisis—made the risks impossible to ignore. Under mounting pressure, Trump put many of the tariffs on hold. Bessent got what he wanted, but hardly the way he wanted it.

At 62 years old, Bessent now faces the enormous task of knitting together MAGA’s populist brand of economics with the more-traditional conservative policies he has championed in high finance, debt reduction, tax cuts, and deregulation. Known for making his name as a “macro” trader, he is now trying to pull off a macro trade on Trump’s ability to remake the U.S. economy. It is one of the riskiest and highest-stakes gambles in modern political and economic history. Should Trump’s trade strategy spark a painful economic downturn, Bessent will share the blame with his boss.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), a longtime friend of Bessent, summed up the gamble:“It will be genius if this leads to great outcomes,” says Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), a longtime friend of Bessent. “If not, it will be considered a huge mistake,” quoted the Wall Street Journal.

The Tariff Pause Implementation

Despite the move, the 90-day pause Trump enacted on most tariffs for most countries has done little to calm the turbulent markets. The initial rally following the pause quickly gave way to continued market nervousness. The stock market remains on edge, and Treasury bond yields—which have a direct impact on borrowing costs—stay stubbornly high. What was meant to be a reset has instead escalated the anticipation of a bruising trade war with China. As one JPMorgan chief rates strategist put it in a note to clients Thursday, “If you think this is over, then you’re wrong,” quoted the Wall Street Journal.

For Bessent, his rising status within the administration has been a silver lining. One senior official described him as an “adult in the room,” noting that he has gained favor with the president. As a result, Trump is now giving Bessent a leading role in negotiating with other countries. “He’s one of the MVPs of the administration,” said Graham. “He’s calming and logical, and he understands President Trump,” reinforcing his growing clout within the White House.

A Strategic Pivot in a Turbulent Economy

Bessent’s journey to prominence is marked by a remarkable transformation—from traditional financier to a MAGA hero and Trump ally. Raised in small-town South Carolina and educated at Yale University, he began his career at George Soros’s hedge fund in 1991. A year later, he played a key role in Soros’s enormous and successful bet against the British pound. Over the years, Bessent has supported candidates from both parties, illustrating his pragmatic approach to finance and politics.

When he got involved in Trump’s 2024 presidential bid, it was partly out of a concern that the nation was running out of time to address its towering debt. His rise was further aided by South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, who advocated for Bessent as Treasury Secretary over longtime Cantor Fitzgerald boss Howard Lutnick. Trump’s aides noted that the president preferred Bessent because he was “very good” on TV, showed up sparingly at the White House, and brought both wealth and acumen to the role.

Bessent’s influence was on full display during the unveiling of the new tariff plans on April 2 in the White House Rose Garden. While most in finance expected limited levies, the measures were far broader. Trump announced that U.S. imports would face a baseline 10% tariff, with much higher rates applied to partners labeled as “bad actors” on trade. Immediately, Bessent warned countries affected by the tariffs: “I would advise none of the countries to panic,” Bessent said in a television interview with Bloomberg. “I wouldn’t try to retaliate because as long as you don’t retaliate, this is the high end of the number.”

Bessent’s push to pause tariffs highlights the stakes of this high-risk economic experiment. With global levies still elevated, markets watch closely to see if his gamble proves genius or folly.