The number of countries that have made contact with the United States over trade since President Donald Trump unveiled his “Liberation Day” tariffs has more than doubled over the past week, National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett revealed on Sunday.
Hassett and Trump administration officials stated last weekend that more than 50 nations had reached out. That number increased to nearly 70 nations, leading up until Wednesday, when Trump announced a 90-day pause on the tariffs for most countries, reverting to a 10% rate, while increasing levies on China to more than 100%.
“The whole point of the trade policy is to address the national emergency that we’re too dependent on foreign products in the U.S., especially if we were at a time of conflict. And we’re doing something about that,” Hassett said on CNN’s “State of the Union,” during an interview with anchor Jake Tapper.
“And the reciprocal act was basically, guys, if you come to the table and negotiate with us and treat us the same way we treat you, then we will get your rate really low,” Hassett added. “So, right now, 130 countries, 130 countries have responded, and we’re negotiating with them, and they have got their rate down to 10%.”
National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett: "Right now, 130 countries — 130 countries — have responded and we're negotiating with them." pic.twitter.com/kR2p6OLG2e
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 13, 2025
Hassett described a bifurcated trade negotiation system in which talks with China are “very, very nascent, if at all,” while discussions are progressing “very quickly” with other countries such as Japan, Korea, and India. “People are coming to town with great, great offers,” he added.
Some pacts are nearly finalized, and the Trump administration was considering announcing a “deal in principle even this week,” Hassett said, “but then we were making so much progress so rapidly that the president decided to instead, instead of having one or two things right now, just go for the 10% pause. And I think it was the right answer, given the massive amount of momentum that we have been seeing.”
Hassett also insisted there is an organized effort behind Trump’s tariff strategy despite the perception of inconsistency between what has been said among the various administration officials, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
“And so what President Trump does is, he sets out a path for everybody, for Howard Lutnick, Scott Bessent, and for Jamieson, on how they would move forward on a particular policy matter,” he said. “And then it’s my job as director to make sure that the president’s wishes are being fulfilled. I’m kind of there to help everybody succeed.”
