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Secretary Wright Discusses GDP, Oil Prices and Trade Uncertainty With Fox News' Sandra Smith

April 30, 2025 · U.S. Department of Energy · 0:04:14

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What happened

Energy Secretary Chris Wright joined Fox News’ Sandra Smith on April 30, 2025, fresh from a cabinet meeting, according to the Department of Energy video, as markets reacted to a surprise GDP contraction of 0.3%, against 2.4% growth in the fourth quarter of the prior year, as the host stated the figures.

Wright said it is one quarter of data, with huge growth in investment and consumption inside the specifics, as he described the report. He said the country is in the middle of sausage-making — restructuring global trade and how funds flow — so uncertainty exists, but clarity would come in a few weeks and the United States would be in a very strong position, as he predicted.

Asked his barometer for progress, Wright named energy consumption, wages — particularly for the bottom half, whom he said bad energy policies hamper most — strong employment growth, energy consumption growth, and growth of American exports to fix the trade imbalance, as he listed them.

On oil, the host noted prices were $75.83 when President Trump took office and had fallen to $58 in trading that day, as she stated the prices. Wright said two pieces explain it: the biggest is Trump’s message that the United States will no longer stand in the way of oil, gas, coal and electricity production, reversing four years of attempts to hamper production that pushed prices up on supply worries, as he argued; the second is fear from trade and tariff uncertainty delaying investment, which he said would be sorted out in the next few weeks, as he put it.

Why it matters

An early test of the energy-growth claim: the Energy Secretary asks for the quarter to be judged on investment, wages and exports rather than the headline GDP print.

Scoreboard watch

The prices as stated on the April 30, 2025 program: oil at $75.83 at inauguration and $58 in trading that day, with a GDP contraction of 0.3% for the quarter. Flagged for the scoreboard editor; no verdict is published from this page.

Sources: U.S. Department of Energy, “Secretary Wright Joins Fox News’ Sandra Smith - April 30, 2025”, 2025-04-30 (official upload, embedded above; published 2025-04-30). Transcript via Supadata (private research store, paraphrased and attributed, not republished). All figures and characterizations as stated by the speakers.