Trump says US will ‘leave’ Iran within weeks as Tehran says it has ‘necessary will’ to end war

Iran war could be costing the US up to two billion dollars per day, experts saypublished at 01:44 BST

01:44 BST

Sakshi Venkatraman
US reporter

The war in Iran could be costing the US as much as $2bn (£1.5bn) per day, experts who tracks the economic toll of global conflicts tell the BBC.

Stephanie Savell, director of Brown University’s Cost of War project, says between weapons and military spending, damage to US assets, and other line items, the war has already cost Americans tens of billions of dollars.

“Every day that the war is ongoing is adding a huge amount to the public debt,” Savell tells me.

The Pentagon earlier this month told Congress that the first six days of the war had cost $11.3bn, US media reports. Savell believes that number is higher in reality.

Harvard University defence budgets expert Linda Blimes says the war is likely already costing around $2bn per day.

That level of cost is always passed down to the average American, Savell says, noting the war has already caused an “upheaval” to gas prices. There are also possible impacts when it comes to inflation, business uncertainty and insurance costs in the long run.

The White House also said earlier this month that it is seeking $200bn (£150bn) more for the war in Iran, which Savell said is a massive number.

“It really does cement that the war is ongoing,” she said.