'We are in a golden age': Trump touts record jobs, factories and stock market in CNBC interview

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump, Thursday, July 2, declared the United States is living through a "golden age" of economic prosperity in a new interview with CNBC, pointing to record factory construction, historic employment levels, rising wages, soaring retirement accounts, and an all-time high stock market as evidence of the economy's strength under his administration.

Trump made the remarks at the top of his interview with CNBC anchor Joe Kernen, opening with a sweeping assessment of the country's economic condition that he said many Americans have yet to appreciate fully.

Trump says workers earning 'more money than they've ever made'

"A lot of people don't understand that right now we are in a golden age," Trump said.

"You understand it very well, you cover it very well."

The president rattled off a series of economic milestones he attributed to his administration's policies, beginning with a surge in domestic manufacturing.

"We have more factories being built today than ever before," Trump said, before turning to the labor market.

"We have more people working today than at any time ever in the history of our country, and people making more money than they've ever made."

Trump was careful to emphasize that the gains he was describing were not limited to upper-income Americans. "I'm not talking about rich people. I'm talking about people that have like normal or normalized jobs, more money than they've ever made before," he said.

He then highlighted the performance of retirement accounts, pointing to gains, he said, that have reshaped the financial picture for millions of households. "401Ks are up at levels that they've never seen before, up 80 and 90 percent," Trump said.

Stock market hits 81 records in roughly a year and a half

On the stock market, Trump said the gains have been nothing short of historic. "The stock market's at an all-time high. I think it's 81 days out of a short year and a half, 81 days, we have 81 records," he said. "So nobody's ever seen anything like that."

The remarks show Trump's strongest public defense of his administration's economic record in recent weeks, as the country celebrates the 250th anniversary of its founding.

Trump has pointed to economic performance as one of the main achievements of his second term. 

He claims that a mix of deregulation, tariff policy, and energy production has fueled the progress he described in the interview. 

This CNBC interview is one of Trump's most notable appearances on financial media during his second term. 

Trump has previously used the phrase "golden age" to describe his vision for the country, including in his inaugural address in January 2025, when he told the nation that "the golden age of America begins now."

The CNBC interview suggests the president views the economic data now available as confirmation that the vision is being realized.