Why are prices still so high? Tracing it back to one root cause

Editor's note:  This Christian Post special series is designed to inform Evangelical voters about the foundational facts behind the major issues shaping today's elections. Noted theologian Wayne Grudem has written these public policy backgrounders to help prepare voters for the elections ahead.  

While CP considers Grudem's biblical perspectives important reading for today's voters, this series does not necessarily represent the company's editorial position on these issues.

Our purpose is to help readers have the Power to Understand the Times.

Higher prices on nearly everything are the No. 1 concern of voters today. What caused this rapid inflation? And is there any effective solution, so that prices will actually start to come down? Democrats and Republicans propose vastly different solutions.

The causes of inflation
1. The primary cause: an increase in the amount of money available in the economy

The primary cause of inflation is an increase in the amount of money available in an economy. Brian Wesbury frequently uses a simple example to show how this works. (Wesbury is the former chief economist, Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress.)

Suppose I have 10 apples and you have $10 to spend on apples. In that case, I will charge you $1 per apple.

Now suppose I have 10 apples and you have $20 to spend on apples. In that case, I will charge you $2 per apple.

The amount of cash available increased from $10 to $20 — and the price of goods followed right along and increased as well (from $1 per apple to $2 per apple). You paid more dollars, but you did not get any more apples. That is “inflation” in the price of apples.

Now, to make an application, let’s say that my 10 apples represent the total output of goods and services in an economy in one year, and let’s say that your $10 (or later your $20) represents the total amount of money in the economy. When the amount of available money increases, prices will as well, and we will have inflation. This means that a nation’s monetary policy (that is, the total amount of money that a government puts into an economy) determines whether or not it has inflation in prices.

This is why Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman could make a famous statement:

“Inflation is always and everywhere a monetary phenomenon in the sense that it is and can be produced only by a more rapid increase in the quantity of money than in output.”

2. Other factors can cause temporary increases in prices for certain goods

Several other factors can cause a temporary increase in the prices found in a specific sector or several sectors of the economy. These factors may include, at various times:

(1) An increase in energy prices, which can have a widespread effect, since everything that an economy produces depends on some input of energy.

This happened in the first half of 2026 because of the disruption in oil prices due to the ongoing war with Iran and the closing of the Strait of Hormuz, which is a key waterway for transporting oil. But today, as I am writing this paragraph (July 2, 2026), the price of oil has fallen to $68.58, and oil is once again being shipped through the Strait of Hormuz.

(2) An increase in government regulations, since complying with regulations requires employee time that would otherwise be used to produce goods and services, and thus imposing more regulations means that fewer products are produced, and this decreased supply pushes prices upward.

The opposite is also true. Canceling government regulations works to keep costs down. Since the Trump administration took effect on January 20, 2025, the federal government has canceled many hundreds of regulations, which has had a deflationary impact and has kept prices from rising even faster.

(3) Tariffs, because sellers raise their prices to cover some of the cost of tariffs.

In 2025 and 2026, there were multiple changes in tariffs proposed by the administration, and various tariffs were approved or nullified by the courts. This resulted in widespread uncertainty about tariffs, which likely had some inflationary impact, but it is difficult to determine how much.

In any case, these three factors will often be temporary and will likely only have a one-time impact that can be reversed if the situation or policy that caused the impact can be changed.

3. Each nation’s government controls the amount of money in that nation’s economy

In every country on earth, the amount of money in a nation’s economy is determined by the government of that country. If the leaders of the government spend all the money available in the treasury but still want more money for another project (such as a new highway, more ships or a palace for the president) and don’t want to raise taxes, they have two other ways they can get the money:

(1) They can tell their treasury to print more money, and then they can use that new money to pay their bills, or

(2) They can borrow the money from the world financial markets by selling bonds that pay a certain amount of interest every year. (For example, assume for a moment that the government of Botswana offers $10,000,000 worth of bonds that will pay 5% interest per year. So if John Doe, who lives in France, pays Botswana $100,000 in cash to buy a bond, Botswana will give him a bond that will pay him $5,000 in interest every year (5% of $100,000), and Botswana also promises to return the purchase price of $100,000 on whatever date the bond is designated to expire.)

But of course, if Botswana sells $10,000,000 worth of bonds, and then spends that $10,000,000 in cash that it received in the sale of bonds, it has still injected more money into the nation’s economy, and so this second option also has an inflationary impact.

Inflation in recent history: The different approaches of the Trump and Biden administrations, 2017–2025

1. Massive spending by Democrats in 2021 led to massive inflation

A comparison of the economic policies of the first Trump administration (2017–2021) and the economic policies of the Biden administration (2021–2025) provides a clear illustration of the different consequences of restraints on government spending (under Trump) and excessive government spending (under Biden).

Joe Biden became president on January 20, 2021, and with Democrats in control of both the House and the Senate, there was nothing Republicans in Congress could do to stop them. Soon the spending spree began.

The American Rescue Plan Act passed the Senate on March 6, 2021, by a vote of 50-49, with all Democrats voting for it and all Republicans voting against it (one was absent). It then passed the House on March 10 with a vote of 220-211 (all Republicans and one Democrat voted against it). President Biden signed it into law on March 11.

This bill was promoted as a further COVID-19 relief program, but Republicans criticized it as likely to cause inflation because it authorized $1.9 trillion in additional government spending. By way of comparison, in the previous year (fiscal year 2020, ending September 30, 2020), the federal government had spent a total of $6.55 trillion, so this bill by itself was authorizing an additional amount of spending equal to 29% of the entire federal government’s budget for the previous year. Or from the perspective of the entire nation’s economy, the GDP (gross domestic product) for the whole country in 2020 was $21 trillion, so adding this $1.9 trillion in government spending meant adding an amount equal to 9% of the previous year’s total economic activity.

But that was not the end of the Democrats’ spending. In the very next year, on August 16, 2022, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act, a bill that authorized the spending of another $891 billion. The bill had passed the Senate by 51-50, with all Democrats voting for it and all Republicans voting against it. Vice President Kamala Harris cast the tie-breaking vote. In the House, it had passed by a vote of 220-207, with all Democrats voting for it and all Republicans voting against it.

Calling this bill the Inflation Reduction Act is almost comically deceptive, because it authorized $891 billion in additional spending by the government, which inevitably had an inflationary impact. That $891 billion equals 3.5% of the total GDP for the United States in 2022 (which was $25.4 trillion).

The bill would more accurately be described as the “Inflation Multiplying and Green Energy Act,” because a large portion of the $891 billion was designated for climate change and green energy projects. Together these two bills ($1.9 trillion in March 2021 and $0.89 trillion in August 2022) added about $2.8 trillion in government spending.

Why did Democrats authorize such gigantic additional spending? The simple, common-sense explanation is that they thought that when they gave free money to millions of people, many of those people would later vote for Democrats.

2. But didn’t Republicans vote for massive COVID relief in 2020?

At this point someone might object that an earlier bill, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) of 2020, which was signed into law by President Trump on March 27, 2020, also contributed to inflation because it was a $2.2 trillion economic stimulus bill. This was the first COVID relief bill, and it was supported almost unanimously by both Democrats and Republicans.

So my response is yes, there was an inflationary impact on the economy from the CARES Act of 2020, but this was necessary to offset the deflationary impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which was driving our economy into recession and threatening intolerably widespread unemployment and the closing of millions of businesses. Because of COVID-19, people simply were not buying anything but necessities, and millions of people were suddenly without work and without pay.

Both Republicans and Democrats recognized the danger, and the CARES Act passed the House on a vote of 419-6. It then was amended and passed the Senate by a vote of 96-0. The amended bill then returned to the House, where it was passed on a voice vote on March 27, 2020, and signed by President Trump the same day.

This bill authorized the government to send checks in the amount of $1,200 per adult and $500 per qualifying child (but only for taxpayers who earned less than $75,000 per year for single filers, or $150,000 per year for married couples filing jointly). It also extended federal unemployment benefits and made loans available for small businesses through a Paycheck Protection Program, with the provision that the loans would be forgiven if used for legitimate business purposes such as payroll, rent, utilities and mortgage.

Both Republicans and Democrats agreed that COVID-19 had created a national emergency and that the CARES Act was necessary. That is a far different situation from the 2021 and 2022 spending sprees that Republicans thought were completely unnecessary. That 2021–22 spending was enacted by Democrats alone, with no Republican support at all.

3. President Biden’s restriction on energy supplies was also inflationary

Finally, I should add that when President Biden took office, he issued executive orders restricting future oil and natural gas extraction, which immediately drove up energy prices and put added inflationary pressure on gas at the pump. Biden also shut down the Keystone XL pipeline project, which would have connected the largest, most sophisticated oil refining hub on the Gulf Coast with access to U.S. and Canadian crude oil. This would have played a major role in ensuring long-term energy security for the United States. But because of environmentalists’ hostility to fossil fuels, Biden revoked the construction permit for the Keystone XL pipeline on January 20, 2021, his first day in office.

This restriction of future oil supply also had an inflationary effect. As of June 2026, the construction permit revoked by President Biden has been reissued by President Trump, but new regulatory reviews are still needed, and construction companies are reluctant to restart a project that might once again be canceled by the next Democratic administration.

4. Comparing inflation under Trump and under Biden

Here is a comparison of inflation rates under President Trump’s first term (2017–2020) and under President Biden and the Democrats (2021–2024):

During the 2024 election, Democrats looked at the inflation rate in 2022–2024 and said, “Look! Inflation is coming down!” But what they failed to mention is that prices did not come down. Prices were still increasing, just not as rapidly. Groceries were still expensive. Gas for driving a car was still expensive. Houses were still expensive. The higher prices had already been baked into the cake, and Americans continue to feel the results every time they go to the grocery store.

The cost of buying a house has been especially affected because the Federal Reserve raised interest rates to try to dampen people’s inclination to spend and thus reduce the rate of inflation. But that meant mortgage rates went from somewhere in the range of 2%–3% under President Trump to a range of 6%–7% under President Biden, and the result is that it is difficult for first-time homebuyers to afford a significantly more expensive mortgage.

If voters want to know why prices on everything are still so high, they need to look no further than the massive influx of cash into the economy during the Biden administration. The Consumer Price Index was 260.5 in December 2020, just before Biden’s presidency began (January 20, 2021). Four years later, the Consumer Price Index was 315.6 in December 2024, at the end of the Biden presidency. That is an astounding cumulative increase of 21.4% during those four years, and prices have remained high ever since.

A family earning a median income of $85,000 in 2020 would have needed to earn $103,190 in 2024 just to maintain the same standard of living ($85,000 x 1.214 = $103,190). But very few employers were increasing wages by 21.4% over those four years, and families felt the pinch of higher prices.

5. Effects of Trump’s economic policies: too soon to tell

The rate of inflation for 2025, the first year of President Trump’s second term, was 2.7%. This is lower than any of Biden’s years but still higher than the commonly used goal of 2% inflation per year. And a significant portion of that 2.7% inflation is likely still the outworking of the 2021–2022 spending spree by the Democrats, which injected a massive $2.9 trillion into the economy (compare this to the entire GDP of the United States, which was $23.7 trillion in 2021 and $26 trillion in 2022).

We have yet to see the results of the numerous policy changes initiated by President Trump and his fellow Republicans, including numerous changes in tariff rates and massive promises of new investments in the U.S. economy. Other changes include widespread deregulation and the issuing of new permits in the energy industry, along with provisions that will lead to increased supplies of coal, oil and natural gas, leading to lower energy prices.

In addition, the passage of the Big Beautiful Bill by Congress, and its signing by President Trump on July 4, 2025, made Trump’s 2017 tax cuts permanent. That will likely boost productivity and increase the supply of goods and services — a deflationary factor.

President Trump’s administration is also aggressively cutting federal regulations that are unnecessary and costly for businesses, and this push for deregulation will put more downward pressure on prices. In short, the actual effect of Trump’s policies on inflation will not be seen until late 2026 and into 2027. (However, one encouraging sign was the announcement on July 14 that inflation slowed from an annual rate of 4.2% in May to 3.5% in June, surprising analysts who had predicted a 3.8% increase.)

6. Kamala Harris blamed inflation on “price gouging”

An interesting example of the Democratic approach to inflation was seen during the 2024 presidential campaign, when Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, was asked what she would do to bring down inflation. She provided a classic example of the thinking of people committed to liberal economic policies, saying that grocery stores were guilty of “price gouging” and that her administration would investigate and penalize any grocery stores that were raising their prices too much.

This answer reveals a remarkable ignorance of how a free-market economy works. If our local Safeway grocery store suddenly raises prices to “gouging” levels, whatever that might be, we don’t need federal officials to march in and penalize Safeway. We will simply go down the street to Kroger and buy our groceries there. If it raises its prices by very much, we will go a little farther to Walmart, and so will hundreds of other customers. Grocery stores that try “price gouging” will soon have very few customers and, unless they change, will likely go out of business. Price competition in a free market will discipline grocery stores so that no government price controls are necessary. In fact, profit margins in the grocery industry are already notoriously thin, most often ranging from 1% to 3% of revenue.

In addition, government-imposed price controls have never worked. Because government-controlled prices no longer give accurate signals about supply and demand, price controls will always lead to shortages in some items, oversupply of other items, and increasing corruption through black-market sales and bribery of government officials.

But Harris’ response reveals three things: (1) She is ignorant of the fact that the problem of higher prices was created by excessive government spending in 2021. (2) She wrongly assumes that the problem was caused by the “greed” of “millionaires and billionaires” who own the grocery stores. (This is disturbingly similar to the communist doctrine that all wealthy property owners — the bourgeoisie — are evil and must be overthrown and removed from power.) (3) She then proposes a new government program — control of grocery prices — that will further restrict our freedom and damage our economy. In short, she represents a traditional liberal mind that thinks, “More government spending and regulation is always the solution and is never the cause of the problem.”

Democratic solutions for inflation

We can now compare the policy statements about inflation found in the platforms of the Democratic and Republican parties, and also in statements by party leaders and in unanimous or near-unanimous votes by one party or another on bills proposed in Congress.

I realize that someone could object that “politicians hardly ever pay attention to what is in their party’s platform.” My reply is that the platforms present positions that have been approved by the national leadership of each party, in the exact wording that has been approved by the party’s leadership at the national level, rather than in sound-bite summaries by reporters.

So the benefit of quoting the platforms of the two parties is that it allows them to express their positions in their own words. If we quote the wording of one of the platforms, we are quoting the exact way the party leadership wants its positions to be represented.

1. Democratic solution #1: Price controls

a. Statements about price controls from the Democratic Party’s platform

“President Biden’s lowering costs agenda [...] [will] crack down on price gouging, and get companies to use their record profits to reduce prices long-term.” (Democratic Party Platform 2024, p. 17)

“the Administration has eased rising rents by capping rent hikes in 2 million federally-funded apartments.” (24)

“we will crack down on corporate landlords who are gouging tenants, for example by capping the amount they can raise the rent each year.” (24)

“when we hear of potential collusion or price-gouging, we’ll hold oil and gas executives accountable.” (34)

b. Why price controls are harmful

(1) No real solution: Price controls do not address the primary cause of inflation. The Democratic platform shows no awareness of the fact that excessive government spending (which increases the money supply) has been the primary cause of inflation. The platform fails to mention the Biden administration’s pouring of $2.8 trillion in new spending into the American economy in 2021–22 (see above) as the actual cause of the intolerable levels of inflation that we endured in 2022–2023.

(2) Shortages and shoddiness: Price controls lead to shortages of various goods and a lower quality of goods, because producers cannot charge enough for their products to make their businesses profitable.

This result is evident in every city that has imposed rent controls on apartment rentals, for example. Owners of apartment buildings soon discover that the artificially low rents required by the government cannot cover the ongoing costs of maintenance, repairs, insurance and mortgage payments. Therefore the buildings fall into disrepair, and there is a continual shortage of available apartments.

(3) Diminished human freedom and responsibility: Price controls diminish human freedom and diminish the dignity that comes from having to make a decision and being held responsible for the outcome of that decision. In a free society, open competition among property owners gives every owner of apartments a strong incentive to maintain a high-quality apartment at a lower price than his competitors.

(4) More power to government: Price controls transfer power from the people as a whole (expressed through their buying choices) to a small group of government officials, thus expanding the power of government. This is generally harmful because the more powerful the government becomes, the greater the temptation to carry out corrupt actions on the part of government officials.

2. Democratic solution #2: Giveaways (giving specific goods to low-income people and giving some items to everyone)

Because people in lower-income categories face the greatest difficulties and challenges during periods of inflation, Democrats emphasize the importance of government giving to lower-income people (and sometimes to everyone) several free goods and services, including healthcare, childcare, housing and additional years of education.

a. Statements from the Democratic Party’s platform

“We support Medicaid expansion, encouraging states to provide health coverage to low-income Americans on the federal government’s tab.” (18)

“Democrats will [...] guarantee affordable, quality childcare to millions of working families for less than $10-a-day per child.” (21)

[President Biden’s budget will fund] “the national paid leave plan” [...] [it] “will create America’s first, full, national paid family and medical leave program, guaranteeing every American worker up to 12 weeks of paid time off to care for a new child or loved one to recover from an illness.” (22)

“one of America’s most ambitious housing plans [...] [includes] [...] $25,000 in down-payment assistance to buyers from families where no one has ever before owned a home.” (24)

“The President’s plan [will also] [...] help build or renovate 2 million homes.” (24)

“Democrats will provide free, universal preschool for four-year olds.” (26)

“The [Biden] Administration supports [...] extending the school day and school year.” (26)

[the Biden Administration will] “make trade school and community college free for every American.” (27)

b. Why these government giveaways are harmful

(1) No real solution: As with the proposal of price controls mentioned above, these government giveaways also do not address the primary cause of inflation, which is massive government spending resulting in a huge increase in the money supply.

(2) More government control of people’s lives: All of the Democratic Party’s solutions involve more government control of our money and our lives. By contrast, all of the Republican Party’s solutions involve less government control of our money and our lives (see below). In addition, the Democratic policies will lead to more people becoming dependent on the government for their needs, while the Republican policies lead to more people being able to earn a living for themselves and be rewarded with the dignity that comes from working to support oneself.

(3) Paying for these benefits will require substantial increases in taxes: Several of the Democratic promises would require substantial increases in tax revenue to pay for the immense costs of programs such as guaranteed childcare for less than $10 per day (compared to today’s typical cost of $10–$20 per hour per child), free universal preschool for four-year-olds, and free trade school and community college for all Americans. But who is going to pay for these giveaways?

Republican solutions for inflation

By contrast, the Republican platform contains some specific solutions to reduce inflation. Here are their proposals:

1. Republican solution #1: Increasing supplies of housing and energy

Republicans will increase the supply of housing by selling some federal land and increase energy production by canceling excessive regulations, especially on energy production.

“To help new home buyers, Republicans will reduce mortgage rates by slashing Inflation, open limited portions of Federal Lands to allow for new home construction, promote home ownership through Tax Incentives and support for first-time buyers, and cut unnecessary Regulations that raise housing costs.” (Republican Platform 2024, p. 14)

“We commit to unleashing American Energy, reining in wasteful spending, cutting excessive Regulations, securing our Borders, and restoring Peace through Strength.” (p. 7)

“Republicans will reduce the Regulatory burden, lower Energy costs, and promote Economic Policies that drive down the cost of living and prices for everyday goods and services.” (15)

2. Republican solution #2: Reduce the money supply by reducing government spending

“We commit to unleashing American Energy, reining in wasteful spending, cutting excessive Regulations, securing our Borders, and restoring Peace through Strength.” (p. 7)

3. Republican solution #3: Increase the productivity of the nation by providing a climate where businesses will invest more and expand capacity to produce more goods and services

“American Workers are the most productive, talented, and innovative on Earth. The only thing holding them back is the suffocating policies of the Democrat Party. Our America First Economic Agenda rests on five pillars: Slashing Regulations, cutting Taxes, securing Fair Trade Deals, ensuring Reliable and Abundant Low Cost Energy, and championing Innovation. Together, we will restore Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for all Americans.” (p. 13)

“We commit to unleashing American Energy, reining in wasteful spending, cutting excessive Regulations, securing our Borders, and restoring Peace through Strength.” (p. 7)

Why the Republican solutions are preferable

1. Real solutions

All of the Republican proposals contain common-sense actions that will make the supply of goods and services larger and less expensive. These proposals will do that not by increasing government control of segments of the economy but by freeing the economy from numerous unnecessary government regulations. Solution #2, which will diminish the money supply by reducing massive amounts of government spending, is a direct approach aimed at removing the primary cause of inflation.

2. Less government control and more individual freedom

In an approach that is the opposite of the Democratic platform, the Republican proposals diminish government control of our money and our lives, thereby increasing human freedom and individual responsibility.

Biblical wisdom

1. Inflation “steals” people’s money

The Bible does not speak directly to the problem of inflation in a modern economy. However, if we reflect on the overall effect of inflation on the citizens of a nation, a basic moral principle becomes relevant.

Consider first an example of the effect of inflation on ordinary Americans. The median household income in the United States in 2021 was approximately $70,000. If a family lived on $70,000 in 2021, then after four years of the Biden-Harris administration and a total of 21.4% inflation,¹ they would need $84,980 to purchase the exact same amount of goods and services in 2025. That means they would need to find an additional $14,980 somewhere (in round numbers, $15,000 more).

2. The Bible’s teaching about stealing

Stealing another person’s property is regularly condemned as morally evil at several points in both the Old Testament and New Testament. The first statement of this moral standard is found in Commandment No. 8 of the Ten Commandments:

Exod. 20:15 “You shall not steal.”

It is then reinforced several times later in the Old Testament:

Lev. 19:11 “You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another.

Deut. 5:19 “‘And you shall not steal.

During Jesus’ earthly ministry, he reiterated this command, as did the apostle Paul in two of his epistles:

Matt. 19:18 And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness,

Rom. 13:9 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Eph. 4:28 Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.

3. Inflation steals from everyone

In contrast to a thief who only steals from one or two homes, the government officials who intentionally increase the money supply in order to cause inflation (and thus allow the government to repay its debts with money that is less valuable) are stealing from every single person in that nation, because they have caused people’s money to be worth less than it previously was worth.

4. Biblical teaching about caring for the poor

Inflation affects everyone, but people who are struggling just to pay the bills each month, and who have little or no savings, are usually the hardest hit. For example, consider a person with $40,000 of annual income in 2021. After four years of President Biden’s administration and 21.4% inflation over those four years, he will need to find an additional $8,560 to maintain the same standard of living in 2025 that he had in 2021. For someone with that income level, finding an additional $8,000-plus would seem to be an impossible task. But for someone in a much higher income bracket, who can probably take some money from savings, the additional expense would be unpleasant but would not be nearly as great a burden.

At this point the abundant biblical teachings about caring for the poor become relevant to the topic of inflation. Here is a sample of dozens of verses about the need to care for the poor:

Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do. (Gal. 2:10)

For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, “You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.” (Deut. 15:11)

Blessed is the one who considers the poor! In the day of trouble the Lord delivers him. (Ps. 41:1)

Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him. (Prov. 14:31)

Application to government policies regarding inflation

If government leaders by their actions cause high levels of inflation, this in effect “steals” money, not just from one person, but from everyone in that society, and so it massively violates the commandment, “You shall not steal.” It also violates many biblical statements about the need to care for the poor, because the poor suffer so greatly when inflation veers out of control.

Government officials in any nation may imagine that they can just print more money or borrow more money to pay for all their special projects, in spite of the inflation that printing or borrowing that money will cause, and they need to realize that willfully causing such inflation is a violation of the Bible’s moral standards that prohibit stealing. I do not think that thoughtful Christians should vote for or otherwise support political candidates and parties who favor continually increasing the amount of money spent by the government, because such actions cause more inflation, and thereby they steal from the entire population.

¹ I used the table “Historical CPI-U, April 2025” from the Bureau of Labor Statistics website https://www.bls.gov/cpi/tables/supplemental-files/. This table gave me a Consumer Price Index of 261.58 for January 2021 (when President Biden took office) and 317.67 for January 2025 (when President Trump took office). ↩