• Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sparked a midday market rally by saying the U.S. had received “good offers” and may finalize major trade deals “as early as this week.”
• But Trump undercut that optimism, telling reporters the U.S. doesn’t need to sign any deals—“they want a piece of our market, we don’t want a piece of theirs.”
• Meanwhile, the U.S. trade deficit hit a record $140.5B in March, up 92.6% YTD, as businesses rushed to import ahead of tariffs.