Trump says "I love the inflation" as he launches more strikes on Iran - National & International News -

Trump says “I love the inflation” as he launches more strikes on Iran

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has released its latest Consumer Price Index report which tracks inflation. The report shows that in May, the prices of key commodities were up 4.2% over May 2025. That’s an increase of 0.5% over April’s year-on-year inflation rate. Key drivers of inflation include rising oil and food prices as a result of the Iran war which has blocked shipments of oil and fertilizer.

Asked if he was concerned about the new BLS report, Trump answered “No. I love it. The numbers were great. You know what I really love? I love the inflation“. He went on to explain that the reason he loved it was that, according to him, prices would come down immediately as soon as the Iran war was over.

Trump also boasted that the US had been guiding oil tankers carrying millions of barrels of oil out of the Strait of Hormuz under cover of night. “We took out the other night 22 ships, late at night, with no lights because they don’t have any radar because we blasted the crap out of it. That’s why oil is $85 a barrel,” Trump said. Brent Crude is currently at about $95 a barrel. Trump later claimed the US had helped free a total of over 200 ships from the Strait since operations began.

More US strikes on Iran

Now for two days running, the US has been carrying out increased strikes on Iran. Initially, Trump said the strikes were in response to the downing of US Army Apache helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week. Now, Trump says he authorized strikes because Iran must “pay the price” for taking too long to negotiate a peace deal. For months, Trump has repeatedly claimed that a deal with Iran was imminent.

During months of a supposed ceasefire, the US has carried out tit-for-tat strikes on coastal military sites in Iran. In the latest round of strikes, however, Trump claims that some Tomahawk missiles targeted sites further inland near Tehran. Trump has also threatened to “keep going,” possibly striking Iran’s power plants and bridges.

Trump may be hoping that renewed strikes and threats of more strikes against key Iranian civilian infrastructure would push Iran back to the negotiating table. However, Iran has responded by launching a wave of strikes targeting US military sites in nearby Kuwait and Bahrain. Tehran has also declared the Strait of Hormuz closed to all traffic and says the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps has struck two ships seeking to pass the Strait of Hormuz “illegally”. US Central Command was quick to deny Iran’s claim that the Strait was closed.