Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick dismissed all forecasts of a recession, saying he “would never bet” on it. President Donald Trump delayed tariffs against Mexico and Canada for a second time this week,

U.S. President Donald Trump maintains tariffs on Mexico, Canada, and China as a lever against the fentanyl crisis. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick assures the measures aim to protect American lives and dismisses fears of a recession,

Trump has cast Canada as a major importer of the synthetic opioid to the US. But the seizures at the northern border represent a tiny portion of the trafficking trade.

US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick has insisted fears that US president Donald Trump's global tariffs will not lead to a recession in the United States. "Absolutely not," Mr Lutnick told NBC on Sunday.

A self-styled Wall Street tough guy, Lutnik served as head of brokerage and investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald before being selected by Trump to take charge of everything from imposing trade restrictions to monitoring the weather.

He did acknowledge that the global tariffs would lead to higher prices for U.S. consumers on foreign-made goods