Today's report on inflation has marked a notable shift in the consumer price landscape in the United States, showing the first decline in consumer prices in several years, a reduction in energy costs, and an increase in real average hourly wages. The changes come amid the current economic policies of President Donald J. Trump, described by some analysts and media as significant.
Stephen Miran, the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, highlighted the impact of current policies by stating that, "That core inflation print, on an annual basis, was the lowest core inflation print since March of 2021, so President Trump’s policies are working at keeping inflation at bay, keeping inflation down. Between that and what’s going on with trade — America is back."
E.J. Antoni, Ph.D., an economist, provided context, mentioning the fluctuation over recent years. He noted, "This is truly remarkable: Average annual inflation rate from ‘09 until ‘21 was 1.8%, then Biden drove it up to 8.6% for a year and a half, then it rose steadily at 3.1% for the rest of his term; but now Trump is averaging a mere 1.0% - remarkable!"
Various commentators from media outlets have echoed these findings. CNBC's Rick Santelli remarked, "We were expecting the exact opposite … These are definitely low numbers!" CNN's Matt Egan reported, “This was actually a drop of .1% — that’s the first time we’ve seen that since COVID. Year-over-year, the annual inflation rate was at 2.4%. This was also better than expected and a 6-month low, moving in the right direction.” Others like USA Today and Axios pointed out the decline was driven by lowered gasoline and car prices, and softened rent increases.
The Associated Press noted, “U.S. inflation declined last month as the cost of gas, airline fares, and hotel rooms fell, a sign that price growth was cooling even as President Donald Trump ramped up his tariff threats.” Similarly, The Wall Street Journal reported on the first month-over-month decline in nearly five years.
Publications including CNN and The Daily Caller commented on the economic rebound, while NBC News observed the decrease in the rate of price hikes for several categories. CBS News and Reuters confirmed the consumer prices’ first decline in nearly five years, with the latter pointing to it as a cooling off of inflation.
Breakline
