US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday blamed an energy supply shock from the war with Iran for the jump in American inflation, telling NBC’s Meet the Press that consumer prices would fall once the conflict is resolved, Mediaite reported. Pressed on who is responsible for the economy, Bessent conceded the administration would take ownership of it.
The interview came days after government data showed US consumer prices rising 3.7% from a year earlier in September, up from 3.4% in August and the highest annual rate in several months, according to ABC News. Gasoline prices jumped more than 9% in September from August and accounted for more than half of the overall monthly increase, ABC said, citing the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Core prices ‘flat’, says Bessent
Bessent argued that the headline number masked calmer underlying trends. He told host Kristen Welker that core inflation had been flat and had fallen for four straight months before September, that food prices were running below the Federal Reserve’s target, and that rents and prescription drug prices had declined. He described the spike as an energy supply-side shock and predicted energy markets would be better supplied after the Iran conflict ends.
Welker countered that gas prices had risen 44% since the war began and noted that inflation stood at 3% when President Donald Trump took office, 636 days ago. When Bessent turned to the record of the previous administration, citing 21.5% cumulative inflation against wage growth of around 17%, Welker challenged him on when the White House would accept responsibility. “Well, we will own the economy,” Bessent replied.
The Treasury chief also said Americans had seen real wage gains of 1.5%, that the private sector had added about a million jobs so far this year, and that household net worth was at a record high.
Pressure on households and the Fed
The strain on consumers remains visible. ABC News, citing AAA data, reported that the national average gasoline price is above US$4.30 a gallon, compared with under US$3 before the war, while diesel has climbed about 66% to US$6.29 a gallon. Annual inflation was 2.4% in February, before the conflict began. The labour market has also cooled, with the September jobs report showing just 29,000 positions added, against 162,000 in August.
The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by a quarter point last month, its first increase since 2023. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh said at the time that “inflation is too high and has been for too long,” according to ABC.
What’s next
Attention now turns to the Fed’s policy meeting on October 28. Investors were pricing roughly a 45% chance of another quarter-point hike, ABC reported, citing CME Group’s FedWatch tool. With September’s figures the last major inflation snapshot before the midterm elections, the trajectory of oil prices and the Iran conflict is likely to remain the key swing factor for US inflation, interest rates and markets in the weeks ahead.
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