In speech, president delivers triumph assessment, claiming US prices are down despite official data showing otherwise
Donald Trump claimed victory on the economy after 12 months back in office on Tuesday, declaring it to be the “greatest first year in history” as many Americans express alarm over the cost of living.
In a stream-of-consciousness speech at the Detroit Economic Club, the US president delivered his gold-tinted view of how the economy has fared on his watch. Prices are down, he claimed, despite official data showing otherwise, and productivity is “smashing expectations”.
Even as he touted achievements during the first year of his second term, Trump has started to acknowledge concerns over affordability across the US, with November’s midterm elections creeping closer. The White House has moved to roll out a series of policy proposals in recent days that aspire to address affordability.
“We’ll go down as the greatest first year in history that nobody’s ever had, just based on the numbers,” Trump said in Michigan, citing inflation and GDP data that showed price growth had stabilized, and the economy grew at a higher pace at the end of 2025.
