Trump, Tariffs and Inflation: Experts Break Down What’s Really Driving Up Prices
Written by
Gabrielle Olya
Edited by
Brendan McGinley
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Americans are increasingly placing the blame for price inflation — which reached 3.0% in September — on President Donald Trump. According to Resonate’s latest Consumer Trends Report, 39% of Americans now blame Trump for inflation, while 37% blame tariffs and trade policies. This marks a shift away from believing corporations are responsible — accusations of corporate price gouging have dropped by nearly 29% year-over-year.
But is Trump really responsible for rising prices, or is it, as these experts say, more complicated?
Trump’s Role in Inflation: One Piece of a Bigger Puzzle
Financial experts agree that Trump’s tariff and trade policies can contribute to inflation, but they emphasize that inflation is driven by a wide range of factors.
“Inflation is always hard to predict as it’s quite a complex and intricate phenomenon,” said Jean-Baptiste Wautier, financial and global economic policy leader at Wautier Family Office.
“It tends to go in waves and shows a lag between the start of inflationary factors and inflation effectively appearing and being measured — typically about six to nine months,” he said. “Today, there are factors potentially generating inflation, and tariffs are one of them, though it’s still hard to quantify due to the lag, but also the fact that some of the tariffs get absorbed somewhere else in the supply chain.”
John Murillo, chief dealing officer at B2Broker, a global fintech solutions provider, also sees Trump’s policies as inflationary, but not the sole cause.
“It’s not happening as a result of a single factor,” Murillo said. “The weakening dollar is doing its part, gold’s momentum keeps feeding on itself and rising retail prices are reinforcing the cycle, turning this into something of a self-fulfilling prophecy.”
Erica Sandberg, consumer finance expert at BadCredit.org, echoed the sentiment that inflation is multifaceted.
“President Trump has imposed a tariff policy that is a factor,” she said. “But the Federal Reserve also plays a key role. The central bank adjusts the federal funds rate to manage inflation. When the cost to borrow money increases, goods and services can become more expensive. And of course, companies, manufacturers and retailers all set prices based on their unique circumstances.”
While Trump’s policies may contribute to inflation, experts agree that rising prices stem from a complex mix of global and domestic factors — and no single leader holds all the blame.
Editor’s note on political coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. You can find more coverage of this topic on GOBankingRates.com.
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