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Treasury secretary says inbox full of trade offers

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Trump and EU Commission chief also held call on Sunday

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Deadline looming for countries to do trade deals with US

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Trump threatens BRICS countries with additional tariffs

By Susan Heavey, Doina Chiacu and Bart H. Meijer

WASHINGTON/BRUSSELS, July 7 (Reuters) - The United

States will make several trade announcements in the next 48

hours, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday, adding

that his inbox was full of last-ditch offers from countries to

clinch a tariff deal before a July 9 deadline.

The clock is ticking down for countries around the world to

conclude deals with the U.S. after President Donald Trump

unleashed a global trade war that has roiled financial markets

and sent policymakers scrambling to protect their economies.

Bessent did not say which countries could get deals and what

they might contain. Trump has kept much of the world guessing on

the outcome of months of talks with countries hoping to avoid

the hefty tariff hikes he has threatened.

"We've had a lot of people change their tune in terms of

negotiations. So my mailbox was full last night with a lot of

new offers, a lot of new proposals," Bessent said in an

interview with CNBC. "So it's going to be a busy couple of

days."

TARIFF LETTERS TO START GOING OUT

Trump said the U.S. would start delivering tariff letters

from 12 p.m. ET (1600 GMT) on Monday, but Bessent said they

would not necessarily contain ultimatums.

"It's just 'thank you for wanting to trade with the United

States of America,'" he said. "'We welcome you as a trading

partner, and here's the rate, unless you want to come back and

try to negotiate'."

For its part, the European Union still aims to reach a trade

deal by July 9 after Commission President Ursula von der Leyen

and Trump had a "good exchange", a Commission spokesperson said.

It was not immediately clear, however, whether there had

been a meaningful breakthrough in talks to stave off tariff

hikes on the United States' largest trading partner.

Adding to the pressure, Trump threatened to impose a 17%

tariff on EU food and agriculture exports, it emerged last week.

Trump had on Sunday said the U.S. was close to finalising

several trade pacts and would notify other countries by July 9

of higher tariff rates. He said they would not take effect until

August 1, a three-week reprieve.

He also put members of the developing nations' BRICS group

in his sights as its leaders met in Brazil, threatening an

additional 10% tariff on any BRICS countries aligning themselves

with "anti-American" policies.

The BRICS group comprises Brazil, Russia, India and China

and South Africa along with recent joiners Egypt, Ethiopia,

Indonesia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates.

Trump's comments hit the South African rand.

EU SEEKS EFFECTIVE APPROACH TO TRUMP

More broadly, stocks drifted and the U.S. dollar held near

multi-year lows after the U.S. flagged the tariff reprieve but

failed to provide specifics.

The EU has been torn over whether to push for a quick and

light trade deal or back its own economic clout in trying to

negotiate a better outcome. It had already dropped hopes for a

comprehensive trade agreement before the July deadline.

"We want to reach a deal with the U.S. We want to avoid

tariffs," the spokesperson told reporters at a daily briefing.

"We want to achieve win-win outcomes, not lose-lose outcomes."

Without a preliminary agreement, broad U.S. tariffs on most

imports would rise from their current 10% to the rates set out

by Trump on April 2. In the EU's case, that would be 20%.

Von der Leyen also held talks with the leaders of Germany,

France and Italy at the weekend, Germany said. Chancellor

Friedrich Merz has repeatedly stressed the need for a quick deal

to protect industries vulnerable to tariffs ranging from cars to

pharmaceuticals.

The German spokesperson said the parties should allow

themselves "another 24 or 48 hours to come to a decision".

Germany's Mercedes-Benz said on Monday its

second-quarter unit sales of cars and vans had fallen 9%,

blaming tariffs.

Russia said BRICS was "a group of countries that share

common approaches and a common world view on how to cooperate,

based on their own interests".

"And this cooperation within BRICS has never been and will

never be directed against any third countries," said Kremlin

spokesman Dmitry Peskov.