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On the campaign trail last year, Donald Trump vowed to “immediately bring prices down, starting on Day One”. Yet since his return to the White House in January, inflation has remained elevated — and voters have noticed. The US president’s approval rating has slipped, weighed down by concerns over the cost of living. However, on Wednesday, he claimed America’s affordability woes are a “con job” and a “hoax” perpetuated by Democrats. In reality, although Trump inherited an economy strained by rising grocery, housing and healthcare costs, his policies have, so far, tended to make matters worse.

Prices jumped about 18 per cent over former President Joe Biden’s term. Under Trump the cost of some symbolic goods, such as eggs and petrol, have come down, but economy-wide inflation has edged higher, adding to the cumulative pain. Data released on Friday showed annual growth in the US personal consumption expenditure price index rose to 2.8 per cent in September, up from 2.3 per cent in April, when Trump unveiled sweeping tariffs.

Import duties have pushed up the cost of trade-dependent goods, including cars and clothing. They have also contributed to higher food and drink prices, including for beef, coffee and some fruits. Likewise, duties on raw materials including copper and timber are filtering into the cost of residential building work, an unwelcome development when the US house price-to-income ratio is near an all-time high.

Tariffs are not the only new pressure point. The administration’s crackdown on undocumented workers has tightened labour supply in farming and construction, which risks pushing up costs in sectors already grappling with shortages. Meanwhile, rising electricity prices in some states partly reflect surging demand from energy-hungry data centres.

Broader economic conditions have not helped poorer households either. They have been hit by weaker wage growth and a slowdown in hiring. Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, many lower-income Americans could lose food benefits support and subsidies for health insurance. Consumer sentiment among the bottom third of earners has dropped to its lowest on record.

The White House has tried to ease cost burdens with piecemeal measures. It has reversed tariffs on dozens of food products that the US cannot produce at scale and has leaned on drugmakers to cut prices for American patients. Last week, Trump also suggested a rollback of fuel-efficiency standards, which he claims will make cars cheaper.

Broader proposals from the administration are not encouraging. One plan to use tariff revenues to provide grants for households could push inflation higher. Another idea to extend mortgage terms may just lock individuals into debt for longer. Trump’s effort to force the US Federal Reserve to cut interest rates, by choosing a pliable chair, also risks backfiring by raising the risk premium on US bonds, thereby pushing up benchmark borrowing costs. As economists have noted, dealing with the underlying drivers of high costs would require initiatives such as improving housing supply, reforming healthcare and cutting more duties.

The president’s public denial of households’ struggles is unlikely to go down well with the public. Many Americans voted for him to ease cost burdens, so pinning the blame on the Biden administration can work only in the short term. Democrats won recent local elections in New York, New Jersey and Virginia with campaigns centred on affordability. Bringing prices down will require Trump to acknowledge the severity of the crunch, accept that some core Maga policies are aggravating it, and commit to deeper remedies.