President Donald Trump began a post on Truth Social on Friday with the comment, "Gasoline just broke $1.98 a Gallon." Gas prices are down in some areas of the country, but AAA reported the average for a gallon of unleaded across the country was holding on Saturday morning at $3.17. AAA also reported that the national average price went up $0.02 since last week.
The President also said in his post that, "groceries (and eggs!) down, energy down, mortgage rates down, employment strong, and much more good news, as Billions of Dollars pour in from Tariffs."
ABC reported that some national consumer price experts said the president’s comments may be misleading. The report indicated that food prices have generally gone up, and gas prices have essentially remained steady.
The report also said that overall food prices throughout America have been rising. But it also pointed to Bureau of Labor Statistics data that shows prices for many staples, including tomatoes, rice, and potatoes, have been falling. Virginia Tech University economist David Bieri told the network, "Prices are still going up - they're just not going up as rapidly."
Analyzing figures and statistics is detail-oriented, and always dictated by which figures are under review. The March Consumer Price Index report "For All Urban Consumers" from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that prices "decreased 0.1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis in March, after rising 0.2 percent in February."