Becent: Tariff Revenues Will Exceed Early-Year Projections and Be Used to Repay Federal Debt

According to a report by Jinse Finance, U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent stated that he expects tariff revenues this year to significantly exceed the initial forecast of $300 billion, and noted that these funds will be used to begin repaying the massive U.S. federal debt. In an interview with CNBC, Bessent declined to provide a new specific revenue estimate but said that he and Trump are "fully focused" on reducing the debt. He stated, "I previously said that tariff revenues this year might be $300 billion, but now I have to significantly raise that expectation."