Trump says some 'big trade deals' to be announced soon

New York, July 19 (IANS) US President Donald Trump said that a couple of big trade deals will be announced soon.

"They could almost do it today ... maybe later on. We'll do it," said Trump at the signing ceremony of the stablecoin act at the White House.

"When I send out the paper that you're paying 35 per cent or 40 per cent tariff, that's a deal. Then, they'll call and see if they can make a little bit different kind of a deal, like opening up their country to trade," added Trump.

Trump has recently signed an executive order to extend the 90-day suspension of sweeping US reciprocal tariffs from July 9 to August 1, with trade negotiations ongoing with several major trading partners, Xinhua news agency reported.

There will be no change or extensions to the August 1 deadline, when tariffs will start being paid, according to Trump's post on social media on July 8.

Trump on Friday signed a landmark stablecoin act into law at a White House ceremony, the first federal regulation in this regard.

The Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act, or GENIUS Act, was passed by the US Senate in June and by the House of Representatives on Thursday.

Trump has been a supporter of the bill and recently intervened in persuading some Republican lawmakers to vote for it.

"The GENIUS Act creates a clear and simple regulatory framework to establish and unleash the immense promise of dollar-backed stablecoins. This could be perhaps the greatest revolution in financial technology since the birth of the Internet itself," said Trump.

The act lays out standards for stablecoins, a kind of digital currency pegged to the US dollar or other fiat currencies.

The Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency would undertake overseeing of stablecoin issuance, according to the GENIUS Act.

The act also creates requirements for issuers to regularly share information about their reserves in the form of US currency, demand deposits, Treasuries and other "approved assets."

Trump suggested that he would go further to make the United States the crypto capital of the world, and the use of stablecoins would increase the demand for US treasuries, lower interest rates, and secure the dollar's status as the world's reserve currency.

With an estimated market capitalization of around $250 billion, the dollar stablecoins are primarily used as an intermediate asset for trading or a tool for accessing the dollar in countries with hyperinflation or other monetary issues.

--IANS

int/rs