Illustration: Alex Nabaum

Dec 30th 2025|6 min read

“I THINK 2026 can be a very good year.” What could be a slurred festive toast is in fact the cheerful forecast of Scott Bessent, America’s treasury secretary, who expects the calendar’s turn to herald faster economic growth. His optimism has foundation. The effects of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (BBB), a tax-cutting law enacted in July, will soon start to be felt. Americans will receive refunds that reflect retroactive tax cuts on income from 2025. They will also find that levies on monthly earnings have fallen. According to Piper Sandler, an investment bank, these “two years of tax cuts in one” are worth about $191bn.

Signage for Mizuho Bank Ltd., a unit of Mizuho Financial Group Inc. (MHFG), at one of the bank's branches in Tokyo, Japan.

America’s economy looks set to accelerate