{"id":71180,"date":"2026-08-31T11:08:22","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T15:08:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/bessent-defends-bond-strategy-at-g20-amid-tensions-with-mentor-and-lawmakers\/71180\/"},"modified":"2026-08-31T11:08:22","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T15:08:22","slug":"bessent-defends-bond-strategy-at-g20-amid-tensions-with-mentor-and-lawmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/bessent-defends-bond-strategy-at-g20-amid-tensions-with-mentor-and-lawmakers\/71180\/","title":{"rendered":"Bessent Defends Bond Strategy at G20 Amid Tensions with Mentor and Lawmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent<\/strong> defended the <strong>U.S. bond market<\/strong> as the month&#39;s top performer, noting the <strong>10-year yield<\/strong> has remained flat since President Trump took office despite recent volatility.<\/li>\n<li><strong>&quot;Operation Economic Outcast&quot;<\/strong> has been launched as a &quot;financial D-Day&quot; to isolate <strong>Iran<\/strong>, with Bessent signaling that secondary sanctions are a &quot;powerful tool&quot; currently being held in reserve to encourage a deal.<\/li>\n<li>Bessent addressed public criticism from his former mentor, <strong>Stanley Druckenmiller<\/strong>, dismissing claims of &quot;artificial yield suppression&quot; and stating he has spoken with the billionaire since his critical op-ed.<\/li>\n<li>Geopolitical shifts continue as Indian Prime Minister <strong>Narendra Modi<\/strong> met with <strong>Vladimir Putin<\/strong> at the SCO summit, emphasizing a &quot;special and privileged strategic partnership&quot; focused on <strong>energy and innovation<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Bessent Rebuts Bond Market Critics at G20<\/h2>\n<p>U.S. Treasury Secretary <strong>Scott Bessent<\/strong> utilized the <strong>G20 summit<\/strong> platform on Monday to push back against critics of the administration&#39;s fiscal and monetary approach. Bessent highlighted that the <strong>U.S. bond market<\/strong> was the &quot;best performing this month,&quot; asserting that the <strong>10-year Treasury yield<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/US10Y\">US10Y<\/a>) has remained remarkably stable since the start of the Trump administration. He dismissed concerns that the Treasury is attempting to manipulate market prices, stating, &quot;I don\u2019t believe I can change bonds&#39; equilibrium price,&quot; and attributed recent market strength to news regarding <strong>bond buybacks<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>The Secretary also addressed the public &quot;shouting match&quot; involving former Bank of England Governor <strong>Mark Carney<\/strong>, calling the escalation &quot;unfortunate.&quot; Despite the friction, Bessent emphasized that he and Federal Reserve Chairman <strong>Kevin Warsh<\/strong> are &quot;on the same page&quot; regarding bond market stability. He declined to speculate on future <strong>Federal Reserve<\/strong> actions but noted that <strong>core inflation<\/strong> has remained &quot;very restrained,&quot; suggesting there is no immediate pressure to raise rates into what he characterized as a &quot;supply shock.&quot;<\/p>\n<h2>&quot;Operation Economic Outcast&quot; Targets Iran<\/h2>\n<p>In a major foreign policy move, Bessent detailed the progress of <strong>Operation Economic Outcast<\/strong>, a sweeping campaign designed to sever Iran\u2019s global financial lifelines. The Secretary stated that the operation is intended to make <strong>Iran<\/strong> &quot;want to make a deal&quot; by leveraging the threat of total isolation. While the U.S. has identified nearly <strong>60 entities<\/strong> for sanctions, Bessent noted that the administration is currently holding off on secondary sanctions against major partners like <strong>China<\/strong> to allow for &quot;quiet diplomacy.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Bessent emphasized that the U.S. can achieve its objectives &quot;without China&quot; if necessary, noting that <strong>Iran\u2019s &quot;oil on water&quot;<\/strong> (stored oil) is limited. The campaign has already impacted global markets, with <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/energy\/crude-oil\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"12\" title=\"Crude oil\">West Texas Intermediate<\/a> (WTI)<\/strong> crude (<a href=\"\/stock\/CL=F\">CL=F<\/a>) pulling back to approximately <strong>$84.82 per barrel<\/strong> as traders assess the potential for a new diplomatic opening or further escalation.<\/p>\n<h2>Domestic Clashes and Global Partnerships<\/h2>\n<p>On the domestic front, Bessent repeated his sharp criticism of Senator <strong>Elizabeth Warren<\/strong> regarding her queries into <strong>yen intervention<\/strong>. He characterized her understanding of foreign exchange as &quot;sciolistic,&quot; clarifying that the Treasury\u2019s actions were currency purchases using existing assets rather than taxpayer-funded loans. Bessent also took a swipe at hedge fund managers, including his former mentor <strong>Stanley Druckenmiller<\/strong>, suggesting they like to &quot;speed things up&quot; and speculating that Druckenmiller may have &quot;lost money&quot; on the day he published his critical editorial.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, on the sidelines of the <strong>Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)<\/strong> summit in Bishkek, Prime Minister <strong>Narendra Modi<\/strong> and President <strong>Vladimir Putin<\/strong> reaffirmed the &quot;India-Russia special and privileged strategic partnership.&quot; The leaders focused on expanding cooperation in <strong>energy, innovation, space, and fertilizers<\/strong>. Modi expressed satisfaction with the &quot;significant progress&quot; in bilateral sectors, signaling that India remains a key bridge between Western-led economic initiatives and the Eurasian bloc.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended the U.S. bond market as the month&#39;s top performer, noting the 10-year yield 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