US nearing first trade deals, tariff cuts expected in weeks: Trump administration

President Donald Trump’s trade representative said that the US was nearing an announcement of a first tranche of trade deals that would see the White House reduce planned tariffs on trading partners, as fresh data fanned new doubts about the state of the economy.

“I would say that we have deals that are close,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Wednesday in an interview with Fox News.

“As a negotiator, I don’t like to negotiate in public, but I will say we’re talking about a matter of weeks and not months, to have some initial deals announced.”

Greer spoke after a Bureau of Economic Analysis estimate showed that the US economy contracted at the start of the year for the first time since 2022, led by a surge of pre-tariffs imports and a reduction in government spending. That read, paired with an ADP Research report showing smaller-than-expected hiring in April, prompted a volatile day on Wall Street.

Many investors are eager to see progress in trade talks, with Trump and aides pledging to quickly execute marathon negotiations with dozens of trading partners. While those talks are unlikely to yield comprehensive new trade agreements during Trump’s 90-day pause of extra tariffs on more than 60 trading partners, the announcement of framework deals could pave the way for further extensions or reductions and soothe concerns about inflation and supply shortages.

Greer said he was not “finish line close” with negotiations with India, but said he had a standing call with the country’s chief trade negotiator. He added that he would be meeting with South Korean negotiators “pretty soon” and that those talks were “going in the right direction.”

The trade representative said he also planned to meet with Japan, Guyana and Saudi Arabia on Thursday, with an additional meeting with representatives from the Philippines on Friday. Other administration officials have indicated that a deal with Asian trading partners who immediately engaged with the administration were likely to be the first to be announced.

Greer also said newly elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was a “serious person” and that the representative’s office was at the ready to engage in trade negotiations. Carney is expected to visit with Trump in the near future.

The US president spent much of the day defending his economic agenda and attempting to cast blame for the GDP contraction at the feet of his predecessor, former President Joe Biden.

“This is the Biden economy,” Trump said Wednesday before adding, “we’ve had a lot of things happen since November 5 that helped this economy.” He was speaking at an event with dozens of corporate executives at the White House intended to highlight investments in the US economy made during his first 100 days in office.

The S&P 500 has fallen more than 8% since Trump took office, and consumer confidence in April hit a near five-year low. But Trump argued to leaders from General Electric Co., Hyundai Motor Co., Toyota Motor Co., Johnson & Johnson, Eli Lilly & Co., Nvidia Corp. and SoftBank Group Corp. that his tariffs were inspiring an unprecedented surge in domestic investment.

“Every new factory and every new job created is a sign of strength in American economy and a declaration of confidence in America’s future,” Trump said.