Bessent says G20 countries should also use tariffs to protect their industries from cheap imports

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, speaking at the G20 Finance Ministerial in Asheville, North Carolina on September 1, 2026, urged some of his G20 counterparts to adopt the Trump administration's strategy of using tariffs and other measures to address trade imbalances. Bessent noted that he had warned nations at the onset of President Donald Trump's second term that the new U.S. "tariff wall" would result in Chinese goods flooding their markets.

Bessent remarked that he was "right" in his prediction, as the world likely needed to take "hard look" at measures to protect their citizens' jobs and manufacturing base, preventing offshoring of everything they do. The Trump administration's tariff policies have come under scrutiny from economists and politicians for raising costs for U.S. consumers and sometimes punishing allies.

A 2025 Tax Foundation study found that the Trump administration's tariffs raised the overall retail price of imported consumer goods by about 7% relative to pre-tariff trends. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in February that Trump's global tariffs under an emergency powers law during his second term were unconstitutional. Bessent met with Chinese counterparts at the summit, though he did not disclose the outcome of those discussions.

He expressed the hope that while they do not want to pull apart from China, they must take steps to de-risk the relationship.