Bessent says Trump tariff, tax cut, deregulation agendas will drive investment to US

WASHINGTON, May 5 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday said President Donald Trump's tariff, tax-cut and deregulation agenda would work together to drive long-term investment to the U.S. economy, adding that U.S. financial markets were "antifragile" and would weather any short-term turbulence.

Bessent, in prepared remarks to the Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles, delivered a full-throated defense of Trump's tariffs but emphasized the Republican tax bill working its way through Congress, saying it would make many parts of his first-term tax cuts permanent, including a deduction for small businesses.

"The primary components of the Trump economic agenda - trade, tax cuts, and deregulation - are not standalone policies. They are interlocking parts of an engine designed to drive long-term investment in the American economy," Bessent said.