The six-month-old US war against Iran has cost $38 billion so far and that amount is projected to rise by $3 billion a month, Congress' bookkeeper reported on Tuesday, as the Trump administration searches for ways to end the conflict and reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz.
The war is expected to increase inflation by 0.5 per cent in the first three months of 2027, according to the Congressional Budget Office accounting, which totaled expenses through August 1.
The mounting costs have strained US munitions stockpiles and driven up energy prices, raising concerns about the country's ability to respond to other potential conflicts and adding pressure on an already stretched federal budget.
The cost was close to the $37.5 billion that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reported at a Senate hearing on July 21.
The budget office said the majority of the costs stem from the rapid drawdown of munitions, estimating that it could take five years to replenish US stockpiles. Reuters reported in August that the US had used "virtually all" of its long-range precision missiles during the war.
The Department of Defense did not cooperate with congressional financial auditors, CBO reported.
White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly described President Donald Trump's attacks on Iran as "decisive action" to prevent Tehran from harming US personnel or interests. She said in a statement that the US military has, "more than enough munitions, ammo, and stockpiles to serve all of the Commander-in-Chief’s strategic goals and beyond.”
Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell disputed the report's findings of munitions shortages and said, "We have everything required to strike at the time and place of the president’s choosing."
(Reporting by Jacob Bogage; Additional reporting by Idrees Ali; Editing by Colleen Jenkins, Don Durfee and Cynthia Osterman)
