Trump Says He's Off to Best Start as President. The Economy Says Something Else

(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump was elected on a pledge to fix all kinds of problems confronting the US economy, from stubborn inflation to a long-term decline in manufacturing jobs. He’s already declared that he’s off to the greatest start of a presidential term ever. The numbers don’t back him up.

The US economy shrank for the first time in three years in the first quarter — mostly a result of surging imports, as corporate America tried to front-run Trump's tariffs. The rest of what economists call the “hard data” have been relatively solid since the president was inaugurated on Jan. 20, with the job market holding steady and inflation showing signs of stabilizing.

When it comes to the soft data, the picture is very different. Surveys of consumer confidence, corporate investment plans and expectations for growth and jobs have all plummeted — and the key reason is Trump’s trade war. His chaotic rollout of the highest US tariffs in more than a century has spread uncertainty throughout the economy. It’s showing up on financial markets too, with the worst stock-market performance — and the biggest dollar slide — at the same stage of any recent presidency. As for American voters, their faith in Trump as a steward of the economy was a key reason why he won last November — and that’s taken a hit too.

Following is a snapshot of some key economic numbers as they’ve evolved in the first 100 days of Trump II.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-says-hes-off-best-150023112.html

You're full of shit Donny - The economy