Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reached the G20 finance ministers’ summit in the Blue Ridge Mountains with little of the calm normally associated with the scenic setting.
Over the weekend, Donald Trump’s latest strikes on Iran had sent shockwaves through global markets, driving bond markets to record highs, while a newly opened trade fight with Canada the previous week added to the sense of gathering economic turbulence.
Bessent was already facing irritation from European officials after a US Treasury move a month earlier, when Washington sold euros and bought yen as part of a coordinated intervention with Japan aimed at shoring up the Japanese currency.
Tensions escalated further over the customary G20 “family photo,” which triggered a diplomatic dispute after European finance ministers refused to stand alongside Russia’s representative. Moscow has been largely excluded from G20 gatherings since Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
European officials made clear they would downgrade their presence and send deputies instead if Kremlin finance minister Anton Siluanov was permitted to take part.
‘The joint approach of the Europeans, for which I am also very grateful, ultimately led to this family photo taking place without the Russian finance minister, without the Russian delegation,’ German finance minister Lars Klingbeil told reporters.
Bessent defended the decision to invite Siluanov, saying: ‘I know that some Europeans had a sour taste, but I think it’s very important to engage.’
Yet the diplomatic row was only one of several fights hanging over the summit in Asheville, North Carolina, where the Trump administration was hosting finance ministers from the ‘Group of 20’ countries.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bescent speaks at the conclusion of the G20 Summit of finance ministers at the Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina, on Tuesday
The Treasury Secretary poses with members of the G20 during the meeting on Monday. The Europeans threatened to boycott the photo if Kremlin finance minister Anton Siluanov was allowed to appear
JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon and Bessent attending the summit
Fed Chair Kevin Warsh (second from left), Bessent (second from right) and Dimon (far right) at the summit in North Carolina
Bessent was also facing a $40 billion tariff fight with Canada, whose prime minister Mark Carney had accused the Trump administration of ‘doing memes’ instead of taking negotiations to end the impasse seriously.
And the Treasury secretary appeared in no mood to back down, mocking Canada’s economic size, telling CNBC as the summit got underway: ‘I don’t think you can be in a tit-for-tat with someone who’s 13 times larger than you are.’
Despite the turmoil, Bessent used the gathering to make the case that America was setting the pace for the global economy.
‘The US is at a very special place in the world because we are the AI superpower and we are pulling away in computing power,’ he said, crediting Trump’s regulatory, tax and energy policies.
He urged other countries to ‘come with us and grow’, arguing that growth was the answer to the mountain of debt confronting the global economy.
‘The world is awash in debt,’ Bessent told reporters. ‘The only way for us to get out of this is to grow our way out of it.’
The IMF expects the US economy to grow more than twice as fast as the eurozone or Canada this year.
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But America’s strength has not insulated it from the shocks created by Trump’s policies. The IMF said this summer that the war in Iran had slowed US growth, while German economists said Trump’s war and tariffs had weakened what otherwise would have been Germany’s strongest growth year since 2022.
David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs, left, and Dimon join finance ministers on Monday
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, left, speaks with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during the G20 Innovation Ministerial in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on Wednesday
President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde at the G20 summit on Monday
The Treasury Secretary and Warsh talk before entering a motorcade in Asheville on Monday
European officials also warned that the administration’s actions were creating instability far beyond America’s borders.
‘I think that in this world where tensions are numerous, it’s probably no time to add tensions, especially between two historical partners,’ French Finance Minister Roland Lescure told reporters.
German central bank chief Joachim Nagel said US officials now understood why Europeans ‘were not really enthusiastic about the fact that there was no prior coordination’ over the currency intervention.
Klingbeil was even more blunt: ‘The past few months have shown that uncertainty is poison for economic growth.’
‘The Iran war, the ongoing tariff disputes with the U.S. and distortions of competition like we are experiencing from China, all of this leads to instability,’ he added.
JPMorgan chief Jamie Dimon welcomed Bessent’s effort to bring business leaders into the discussions.
‘For the first time at G20, the Treasury has given the private sector a place at the table. Good policy is made better when those who lend, hire, invest and build have a voice in shaping it,’ Dimon said.
‘We are here as America celebrates our 250th anniversary. This is a moment to reflect on how far our nation has come. And it is the perfect time to rededicate ourselves to the values that made this great nation of ours – freedom, liberty, and opportunity.
Bessent chats with Dimon at the summit
Bessent talks to America’s preeminent banker, Dimon, at the summit
‘We encourage the other countries of the G20 to join us as we look back on this historic milestone for the United States, and as we look forward together to growth and opportunity for the next 250 years.’
The finance ministers’ meeting was also a preview of the headline G20 leaders’ summit, hosted by Trump at his Doral resort in Florida in December.
By then, the President will have faced the November midterms, which will be viewed in part as a referendum on his economic management of the US.
With gas prices still stuck above $4 a gallon, Europe’s finance ministers may be the least of Trump’s concerns.