Consumer prices rose in May in the United States for the third month in a row. Trump promises decline when conflict in Iran is over.
president of the united states, Donald Trump is apparently fine with rising inflation in the US.
The president was asked at the White House on Wednesday about the latest inflation figures for May, which according to the media BBC showed that inflation in May was 4.2 percent compared to the same time a year ago.
– I love it. The numbers were good. You know what I really love? I love inflation, says Donald Trump according to the BBC.
The president has previously said that the war in Iran will temporarily cause an increase in consumer prices, but that he expects inflation to decline quickly once the war is over.
Since the US and Israel launched the first wave of attacks in Iran on 28 February, the prices of oil and gas in particular have risen.
After the first attacks, Iran introduced a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 percent of the world’s consumption of oil and gas is normally shipped.
Donald Trump promises on Wednesday that inflation will “drop like a rock” when the war is over.
– When the conflict is over, you will see the oil price fall to the previous level, he says according to the BBC.
The US central bank (Fed) has a long-term inflation target of two percent.
When inflation is significantly higher than the central bank’s inflation target, the central bank will typically raise interest rates to dampen consumption and bring inflation under control.
In the past three months, inflation has risen in the US, which according to the BBC puts the newly appointed head of the US central bank, Kevin Warsh, under pressure ahead of an interest rate meeting next week.
Warsh was sworn in as governor of the US Federal Reserve on May 22.
Kevin Warsh has taken over the post after a long period in which Donald Trump expressed dissatisfaction with Warsh’s predecessor in the post, Jerome Powell.
A large part of the dissatisfaction was rooted in the fact that Powell – contrary to Trump’s wishes – would not lower interest rates.
In April, at his last rate meeting as Fed chief, Jerome Powell maintained the key interest rate in the range of 3.50 to 3.75 percent.
/ritzau/
