President Donald Trump's economic approval rating has collapsed to the lowest point of either of his terms, just as fresh government data confirm that grocery prices have surged at their fastest pace in nearly four years. For a president who built his 2024 comeback bid on the promise of cheaper everyday essentials, the combination amounts to a direct hit on the central claim of his re-election campaign.
At the height of the race for the White House, Trump told a crowd in Pittsburgh on 4 November 2024: 'A vote for Trump means your groceries will be cheaper.' Sixteen months into his second term, that pledge has met reality head-on. The US Consumer Price Index, published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on 12 May 2026, shows overall food prices rose 3.2 per cent in the twelve months to April, the steepest annual increase since May 2023. The index for food at home, the measure most directly tied to supermarket spending, jumped 0.7 per cent in April alone, its largest single-month gain since August 2022.
