Trump signs orders to try to tackle inflation and lower energy prices

Donald Trump signed a memorandum on inflation and multiple orders aimed at lowering energy prices, but the incoming president’s advisers offered few details on the policies, raising serious questions about whether the new administration will be able to address one of Americans’ most pressing concerns.

During a press call on Monday morning, incoming White House advisers pledged that Trump would pursue an “all of government approach to bringing down costs for American citizens” but they declined to outline concrete steps that the administration would pursue to lower prices.

“I don’t want to get ahead of the president here, but I will say that this is going to be an all of government approach here,” one adviser said. “It is a crucial issue … that necessitates decisive action as early as possible in the administration, and that’s what the president is doing with this presidential memorandum.”

During Joe Biden’s presidency, the annual consumer price index (CPI) – which measures the price of a broad range of goods and services – reached a post-pandemic peak of 9.1%. It has since fallen to 2.9% as of last month. Although polls showed that the economy and rising prices specifically ranked as top priorities for voters in November’s elections, Americans are split on whether Trump will be able to tackle the issue.

According to an AP-NORC poll conducted this month, only 21% of Americans are extremely confident in Trump’s ability to lower the costs of food and groceries this year while another 17% are moderately confident he can do so.

Trump also declared a “national energy emergency” as the new president has promised to “drill, baby, drill” to expand oil and gas production in the US. The new president also signed an executive order focused on “unleashing affordable and reliable American energy.”

“High costs of energy are unnecessary. They are by design. It is a cause of policy,” the adviser said. “We can address that, but it has been punitive to the American people over the past four years and something that we immediately need to rectify for our nation’s prosperity.”

As of Monday, the national average cost for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline stands at $3.125, according to AAA. In comparison, the average hit an all-time high of $5.016 in June 2022, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused a surge in gas prices. Asked how much they expected oil prices to fall during Trump’s presidency, his advisers declined to offer a specific target.

“Energy prices permeate every single part of our economy,” a Trump adviser said. “It’s also key to restoring our national security and exerting American energy dominance around the world.”

Trump signed another order aimed at increasing Alaskan oil production, as the adviser described the state as “a crucial place from which we could export [liquified natural gas] not only to other parts of the United States but through our friends and allies in the Asia Pacific region”.

One reporter asked Trump’s advisers about the new president’s planned actions on trade relations, but the officials sidestepped the question, instead directing journalists to the Wall Street Journal’s coverage of the issue.

Trump also issued a broad memorandum directing US agencies to examine trade policies and trade relationships with nations like China, but the new president plans to stop short of issuing tariffs on day one of his second term.

Trump had previously promised to enact sweeping tariffs against not only China but Mexico and Canada as well, prompting warnings from economists that such a policy could drastically increase prices on everything from automobiles to food supplies. Trump consistently dismissed those warnings on the campaign trail, but last month, he acknowledged that he could not guarantee Americans consumers wouldn’t pay more for goods as a result of his proposed tariffs.

“I can’t guarantee anything,” Trump told NBC News. “I can’t guarantee tomorrow.”