Trump lavishes praise on McDonald’s as soaring beef prices hit US households

Trump praised McDonald’s as “one of the most successful companies in the history of the world” as he thanked the fast-food giant for slashing prices. The president used his speech at the McDonald's Impact Summit on Monday to insist that the cost of living is falling, despite the ongoing burden of high beef costs on US household budgets.

Government data shows the average price of ground beef hit about $6.32 (€5.46) per pound in September, up roughly 13% year-on-year.

The Economist’s Big Mac index puts a US Big Mac at $6.01 (€5.19) according to its latest reading in July, up from $5.69 (€4.91) a year earlier and $5.15 (€4.45) three years ago.

While the concept of the “Big Mac Index” is somewhat tongue-in-cheek, it uses the popular patty burger served at McDonald's franchises across the world as an indicator of inflation. In other words, comparing the price of a Big Mac in different countries can be used to assess purchasing power.

“I’m honoured to stand before you as the very first former McDonald’s fry cook ever to become president of the United States,” Trump told McDonald’s franchise representatives in Washington on Monday.

The president was invoking his 30-minute stint behind the counter as part of the Republicans' 2024 election campaign.

Elsewhere in the speech, the US leader recalled how his private plane, Trump Force One, served McDonald’s on the campaign trail. He said he once made Robert F. Kennedy Jr. eat a McDonald’s meal “and he loved it”.

Trump also reached for Silicon Valley star power, thanking “the famous Sundar (Pichai) and Sergey Brin". "These are two guys that own and run a place called Google, they called me after I did the McDonald’s skit... it received more hits than anything in the history of Google,” he claimed.

The president is leaning on McDonald's — often used as a sign of the working class and as the quintessentially American dining experience — as a partner in his economic messaging campaign. That's as grocery and basic goods prices remain high after the 9-month mark in his presidency.

Even with some cooling from the post-pandemic price peak a few years ago, US consumers are still paying noticeably more for everyday items such as beef and coffee than they were a few years ago.

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, "The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis in September, after rising 0.4% in August."

Seemingly referring to the franchisees present in the room, Trump added: “As president, I’m fighting every day to support small businesses like yours… we’re making tremendous progress.”