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AP

FACT FOCUS: Trump says illegal immigration increased car insurance premiums. Experts say otherwise

  • By MELISSA GOLDIN - Associated Press
  • Updated

President Donald Trump is crediting his tough immigration policies for a drop in car insurance premiums. He is falsely blaming illegal immigration during his predecessor’s time in the White House for a prior increase. But experts say that increased costs were primarily due to effects from the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to riskier behavior on the roads and supply chain disruptions. Now that insurers are on a better financial footing, they are cutting rates to stay competitive with customers. There is no evidence to suggest that illegal immigration played a significant role in either the rise or the fall of insurance premiums.

National
AP

Higher prices for gas, groceries and flights will likely outlast the Iran war

  • By MAE ANDERSON - AP Business Writer
  • Updated

Economists and industry analysts say that even after oil starts flowing again from the Middle East, it could take awhile for the Iran war's effects on consumer prices to recede. That's because the fighting disrupted not only fuel supplies but also the supply chains for fertilizer, food and even footwear. Experts say that as long as business costs are elevated, customer prices are likely to be too. Gasoline, groceries, airline tickets and other items have all gotten more expensive during the war.

Even with a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, it could take weeks or months for oil to fully flow
National
AP Wire

Even with a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, it could take weeks or months for oil to fully flow

  • By DAVID McHUGH and CATHY BUSSEWITZ - AP Business Writers
  • Updated

The tentative agreement to end the war in Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz would be good news for the global economy. But oil won't simply start flowing through the key shipping artery the way it did before the war. Then, it carried a fifth of the world's crude. Now, it will take time for hundreds of ships trapped in the Persian Gulf to exit through the narrow strait. And Gulf oil producers that throttled back production will need time to get oil moving again. And ship captains may take their time deciding it's safe and that the threat of attack from Iran has truly receded.

Tomatoes become latest symbol of America’s affordability squeeze
National
AP Wire

Tomatoes become latest symbol of America’s affordability squeeze

  • By MATT SEDENSKY - AP National Writer
  • Updated

Prices for tomatoes are up 40% over the past year, the biggest increase tracked among products in the Consumer Price Index. Experts say the spike is the result of crop yields and two pillars of President Donald Trump's second term policies. The Iran war has spiked shipping costs. And Trump has slapped tariffs on tomatoes from Mexico, which grows most of America's supply. Outraged consumers are voicing their displeasure online, but the impact is most acute among businesses that rely on tomatoes as a key ingredient. Wayne Humphrey of Snarf’s Sandwiches, which which operates dozens of stores in Colorado, Missouri and Texas, says the price hike will cost him $1.7 million this year.