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Money and the economyLesson 1 of 8

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13 min

Supply and demand: why prices move

In early 2025 eggs cost more than ever before in the US. Nobody decided that. Here's how a price gets set when no one sets it, and what a café does when its eggs double.

Ticket 01 · The guess

How much did eggs jump?

Over the twelve months to March 2025, by how much did US egg prices rise?

20%
0%100%

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Sources and every number (5)

Sources

  • Consumer Price Index, March 2025 (news release of April 10, 2025): twelve-month changes, not seasonally adjusted (eggs, all items, food at home) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025
  • Charts of Note: Retail egg prices fall, following declining wholesale prices (June 3, 2025) · USDA Economic Research Service, 2025
  • Consumer Price Index, September 2026 (news release of October 14, 2026): twelve-month changes by item, not seasonally adjusted · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2026
  • The Economics Daily: Prices for gasoline increased 34.2 percent over the year ended September 2026 (October 16, 2026), twelve-month changes in the CPI by item · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2026
  • Press release: Hormuz closure and related production outages are key drivers in EIA's latest forecast (April 7, 2026) · U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2026

Every number

  • 60.4%bls.gov ·2025 · Change in US egg prices over the twelve months to March 2025, not seasonally adjusted (Consumer Price Index).
  • 2.4%bls.gov ·2025 · Change in all US consumer prices together over the twelve months to March 2025, not seasonally adjusted.
  • 50.7 million hensusda.gov ·2025 · Egg-laying hens removed in the bird flu wave from mid-October 2024 to early March 2025 (USDA Economic Research Service).
  • $8.20usda.gov ·2025 · Monthly average wholesale price of a dozen eggs, February 2025 (USDA Economic Research Service).
  • $3.74usda.gov ·2025 · Monthly average wholesale price of a dozen eggs, April 2025 (USDA Economic Research Service).
  • $5.12usda.gov ·2025 · Average retail price of a dozen eggs, April 2025: more than a dollar below its March peak (USDA Economic Research Service, from BLS data).
  • 60 dozenexample (example number: Simplified example: a brunch café: the eggs it uses in a week.) · Simplified example: a brunch café: the eggs it uses in a week.
  • $9.00example (example number: Simplified example: a brunch café: what its supplier charged for a dozen in February 2025, a little above the wholesale price that month.) · Simplified example: a brunch café: what its supplier charged for a dozen in February 2025, a little above the wholesale price that month.
  • $4.50example (example number: Simplified example: a brunch café: what its supplier charged for a dozen in April 2025, a little above the wholesale price that month.) · Simplified example: a brunch café: what its supplier charged for a dozen in April 2025, a little above the wholesale price that month.
  • $540example (example number: Worked out from the example: sixty dozen at the February price.) · Worked out from the example: sixty dozen at the February price.
  • $270example (example number: Worked out from the example: sixty dozen at the April price.) · Worked out from the example: sixty dozen at the April price.
  • $270example (example number: Worked out from the example: sixty dozen times the drop in the supplier's price.) · Worked out from the example: sixty dozen times the drop in the supplier's price.
  • −20.6%bls.gov ·2026 · Eggs, twelve months to September 2026, not seasonally adjusted (Consumer Price Index).
  • −0.7%bls.gov ·2026 · Dairy and related products, twelve months to September 2026, not seasonally adjusted (Consumer Price Index).
  • 3.5%bls.gov ·2026 · Beef and veal, twelve months to September 2026, not seasonally adjusted (Consumer Price Index).
  • 7.1%bls.gov ·2026 · Coffee, twelve months to September 2026, not seasonally adjusted (Consumer Price Index).
  • 34.2%bls.gov ·2026 · Gasoline (all types), twelve months to September 2026, not seasonally adjusted (Consumer Price Index).
  • 3.7%bls.gov ·2026 · All items, twelve months to September 2026, not seasonally adjusted (Consumer Price Index).
  • $103eia.gov ·2026 · Average spot price of a barrel of Brent crude oil in March 2026, as the US Energy Information Administration reported in April 2026.
  • $3example (example number: Simplified example: the lab town's egg price before anything changes.) · Simplified example: the lab town's egg price before anything changes.
  • 30%example (example number: Simplified example: a bad bird-flu winter in the lab's town.) · Simplified example: a bad bird-flu winter in the lab's town.
  • 5%example (example number: Simplified example: holiday baking adds a little demand.) · Simplified example: holiday baking adds a little demand.
  • 10%example (example number: Simplified example: some hens still missing in spring.) · Simplified example: some hens still missing in spring.
  • −10%example (example number: Simplified example: fewer people bake in spring.) · Simplified example: fewer people bake in spring.
  • 0%example (example number: Simplified example: no change.) · Simplified example: no change.
  • 5%example (example number: Simplified example: most hens are back.) · Simplified example: most hens are back.
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