Treasury Secretary Bessent Projects 3.5% Economic Growth for 2026 Despite Q4 Slowdown

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently shared an optimistic outlook for the United States economy. According to The Street, he told Fox News that the economy can grow by at least three point five percent in two thousand twenty six. He dismissed the weak fourth quarter gross domestic product report of one point four percent as artificially low due to a federal government shutdown from October first through November twelfth. That shutdown clipped federal spending and labor services, dragging growth by about one percentage point, per the Bureau of Economic Analysis and Reuters reports cited in The Street. Bessent highlighted underlying strengths like steady consumer spending at two point four percent, business investment, and artificial intelligence driven capital spending. Intellectual property investment rose seven point four percent in the fourth quarter, fueled by tech giants such as Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft planning nearly six hundred fifty billion dollars in capital expenditures for two thousand twenty six, as noted by Yahoo Finance in The Street article. On tariffs, Bessent addressed a Supreme Court ruling at the Economic Club of Dallas on February twenty first, according to KCEN News. The court in a six to three decision said the International Emergency Economic Powers Act cannot impose tariffs for revenue. Bessent clarified the ruling does not block President Trumps tariffs overall. The administration will use alternative authorities like Section two three two and Section three zero one, which already collect similar revenue of about one hundred seventy five billion dollars annually. Fortune reports President Trump raised a new global tariff from ten percent to fifteen percent under Section one twenty two of the Trade Act, starting February twenty fourth. Bessent said this keeps Treasury revenue virtually unchanged despite the ruling. He also promoted Trump accounts, one thousand dollar investment accounts for children born between two thousand twenty five and two thousand twenty eight, with contributions from families, employers, philanthropists, and states to give kids a stake in the American dream, as detailed in the KCEN News transcript. Fox twenty six Houston covered Bessent discussing business moves to Texas, cryptocurrency rise, and the tariff decision. Thank you for tuning in, listeners. Please subscribe for more updates. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out Quiet Please dot ai. For more http://www.quietplease.ai Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.