Scott Bessent Says Tariffs Will Result In $300B Windfall This Year As Trump Holds Firm On August Deadline

The U.S. expects a mighty windfall from President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal tariffs” even as their implementation is fraught with uncertainties.

While speaking at a Cabinet Committee meeting, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that levies, which came into effect in April, have so far generated $100 billion in income, according to a Reuters report.

Bessent expects the tariff income to rise three-fold by the end of the year. “So we could expect that that could be well over $300 billion by the end of the year,” he said.

Trump first announced sweeping tariffs on its trading partners in early April but subsequently suspended most of them, barring a 10% baseline rate and some sector-specific levies, for 90 days to allow time for bilateral negotiations.

Just as the July 9 deadline for resuming the tariffs neared, the president announced an extension until Aug. 1, but sent letters to major trading partners outlining the plan of action in the event of no deals.

The uncertainty around the tariff outlook has led to a lackluster sentiment in the market in recent sessions.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ETF, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that track the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 Indexes, have fallen 0.80% and 0.70%, respectively, so far this week.

Both ETFs were among the top ten active tickers on Stocktwits late Tuesday. 

While retail sentiment toward the SPY ETF turned to ‘neutral,’ that toward the QQQ stayed ‘bullish.’

In a Truth Social post, Trump clarified that there would be no delay beyond the Aug. 1 deadline. “TARIFFS WILL START BEING PAID ON AUGUST 1, 2025. There has been no change to this date, and there will be no change,” the president said.

“In other words, all money will be due and payable starting AUGUST 1, 2025 - No extensions will be granted.”

The report stated, citing a Treasury Department official, that the timeline Bessent referred to was the calendar year-end, not the Treasury’s fiscal year, which ends on Sept. 30.

The federal official also said the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) estimate of $2.8 trillion tariff revenue over the next 10 years was “probably low.”

The Treasury reported record gross custom duties of $22.8 billion in May, sharply higher than the $6.2 billion collected a year ago. 

More details on the tariff income trends will emerge when the Treasury reports its June budgetary balance report on Friday. 

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.

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