Wholesale egg costs are falling. Will customers see some aid?
When saying his newest spherical of tariffs on April 2, President Trump veered into the topic of eggs, noting that costs “dropped now 59%, and so they’re taking place extra, and the supply is unbelievable.”
Wholesale egg costs — or the value paid by massive consumers like grocery shops — have declined 43% since yr begin, with a lot of the decline occurring since Mr. Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration. Whereas retail information for March is not but out there, grocery shops inform CBS MoneyWatch that decrease costs are actually beginning to trickle all the way down to customers, and that there ought to be loads of eggs out there for Easter and Passover later this month.
Decrease egg costs might symbolize a vibrant level for customers at a time when inflation stays sticky, and might reignite this yr due Mr. Trump’s tariffs, economists say. The brand new levies are set to hit all imports from meals merchandise to cars. Egg costs have declined partly as a result of U.S. Division of Agriculture’s five-point plan to sort out the problem, which incorporates battling the hen flu and importing eggs from nations together with Turkey and South Korea.
Egg costs at Northeast grocery chain Stew Leonard’s have declined not too long ago, with typical eggs now all the way down to to about $5.99 a dozen from $10 a dozen at their peak in December, stated Andrew Hollis, director of gross sales.
“We’re undoubtedly again to low value eggs once more — there’s lot of aid and loads of provide,” Hollis instructed CBS MoneyWatch. “Our demand will go up 40% for Easter, so we’re not apprehensive in any respect and really feel like we’ll have loads of eggs on the shelf.”
Demand for eggs additionally fell as a result of excessive retail costs on the finish of 2024, which prompted some households to chop again on shopping for them, Hollis added. That is allowed farmers to rebuild their provide, he stated.
Walmart, one of many nation’s greatest grocers, additionally stated that its egg costs have declined in current weeks, though it did not specify the decline. A dozen eggs are retailing for about $5 a dozen, in line with Walmart’s web site.
After months of the hen flu impacting egg provides and costs, egg losses as a result of illness declined in March, in line with a launch final week by USDA.
However one situation that would pose a menace to egg costs are Mr. Trump’s new tariffs, which can apply import taxes to merchandise from all nations, together with Turkey and South Korea, the place the U.S. has an settlement to supply extra eggs. The nations will face tariffs of 10% and 25%, respectively. These taxes are more likely to be handed onto customers within the type of larger costs.
The USDA did not instantly reply to a request for remark concerning the influence of tariffs on egg costs.
