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Egg prices reach record high in US – why are they so expensive?
By Lauren Russell, news reporter
Egg prices in the US have reached a record-high.
The average price for a dozen eggs reached $6.23 (£4.82) in March, despite a drop in wholesale prices and no egg farms having outbreaks of bird flu.
The country has been experiencing record-high prices since the beginning of the year, hitting $5.90 in February, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than double the long-term average of $2 (£1.54).
Here’s everything you need to know about how America has been scrambling for eggs, and why.
Recession is avoidable, says ‘Dr Doom’, but China drama could get worse before it gets better
Nouriel Roubini, the economist better known as Dr Doom, says he expects the trade war between the US and China to get worse before it gets better.
The policy expert, who in 2006 correctly predicted the financial crisis, spoke at the Delphi Economic Forum in Greece hours after Trump pressed the pause button on his trade war with everyone except Beijing.
“I fear that even if they sit down and try to negotiate… with China it’s a bigger mess and mostly likely, for now, we are escalating rather than de-escalating,” he said.
Roubini added that China is worried the US “is out to destroy it” both economically and militarily.
“Therefore,” he adds, “for the time being this game of chicken between the US and China is going to continue, the question is, who is going to blink, whether they can sit down and find a grand bargain.”
Despite this, Roubini said he still thought a US recession was avoidable.
“They call me Dr Doom, but I’ve always been a contrarian. Wall Street has been predicting a recession, but I actually think it is avoidable. I might as well be Dr Boom.”
PM: Trade deal with US ‘will not alleviate UK’s economic challenges’
Sir Keir Starmer has warned the challenge posed by Donald Trump’s tariffs has “not gone away” despite the president announcing a 90-day pause on the higher rates.
The president has indicated the timeframe will be used to strike deals with trading partners and claims around 75 countries have asked the White House for talks.
“I’m very pleased to see the changes in relation to the tariffs,” Starmer told reporters in Cambridgeshire today. “But the challenge hasn’t gone away, and I don’t think this is a passing phase. I think we’re living in a changing world.”
Pushed on whether a deal could be done with the US, Starmer says “our teams are talking and we’ve got good relations”.
But he adds: “I’m clear in my own mind that that on its own will not alleviate the challenges, it’s bigger than that and that’s why we’ve got to step up and turbocharge our economy.”
‘Trump took no responsibility for market chaos’
Donald Trump struck a conciliatory tone during his “press conference turned cabinet meeting” today, news correspondent David Blevins says.
He notes that Trump failed to respond directly to questions about the US markets, which opened down today despite the president’s pausing most of his higher worldwide tariffs.
“He didn’t take any responsibility at all for the chaos we’ve witnessed in the markets,” Blevins says.
“Instead, when he got a question about what happened this morning, the drop in the US markets, he deferred to his treasury secretary, Scott Bessent.”
What happened during Trump’s cabinet meeting?
Donald Trump’s cabinet meeting came to a close at around 7pm UK time.
The US president said “everything will be beautiful” once the “transition problems” attached to his tariff policies come to an end.
He also told his cabinet he believes the US will “end up working out something” with China “that’s very good for both countries” – hours after the White House confirmed the total tariffs on Beijing were at 145% (see 17.08 post). In the same answer, he repeated his view that China has ripped off the US.
On countries looking to make a deal with his administration over tariffs, Trump said that if the US “can’t make the deal that we want to make” it would “go back to what we were”.
Watch: Trump ‘very happy with way country is running’
Here’s what the rest of his cabinet said during the meeting:
- Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said a process is being put in place for countries to negotiate with the US over trade and tariffs;
- Howard Lutnick, secretary of commerce, said countries have come “with offers they never, ever would have come with before”;
- Health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr said the US will know by September what has caused the “autism epidemic”;
- Tulsi Gabbard, director of national intelligence, said files related to the assassinations of JFK and Martin Luther King Jr will be released in the coming days;
- Attorney general Pam Bondi said the government won’t negotiate with people accused of attacking or vandalising Teslas and Tesla dealerships;
- Elon Musk told the cabinet that his DOGE department expects to make savings of $150bn (£115bn) from the government budget in the next financial year;
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio said there will be direct talks between US envoy Steve Witkoff and a “top leader of Iran” on Saturday.
Trump gives Musk backing – and reveals what he does with Tesla he bought
Donald Trump gets to Elon Musk during an answer about government spending, saying the Tesla and SpaceX owner has done a “fantastic job” heading up his new Department of Government Efficiency (aka DOGE).
He then says he doesn’t need Elon “for nothing but I happen to like him”.
It comes after Musk rubbished reports that he would be leaving his government role in the coming months.
Trump went on to say he “doesn’t need” a Tesla car, despite buying one in what he described as a “show of support” for Musk last month.
He says he “paid a lot of money” for the car, but he lets office staff in the White House drive it instead.
“They’re all driving around the most beautiful car. It’s gorgeous,” he adds.
“But I did that as a show of support. Numerous people have done that. It’s a show of support because he’s done a fantastic job, but he hasn’t been treated properly.”
Watch: Trump buys Tesla to support Musk
Trump praises ‘very smart’ EU over tariff decision
Trump is asked by a reporter about the European Union, which he says is being treated as a single bloc when it comes to tariffs and not as individual countries.
He praises the EU for being “very tough, but very smart”, saying they decided to “hold back a little bit” with their retaliation after seeing how Trump handled China.
“They decided to hold back. I thought they were very smart,” he added.
‘They’ve ripped us off’: Trump says he would ‘love’ deal with China – despite ramping up tariffs
The cabinet meeting now turns to questions from reporters in the room, one of which is directed straight to Donald Trump about what his next steps are for China.
“We’ll see what happens with China,” he says.
“We would love to be able to work a deal. They’ve really taken advantage of our country for a long period of time. They’ve ripped us off.”
“All we’re doing is putting it back in shape,” he added. “We’re resetting the table, and I’m sure that we’ll be able to get along very well.
“I have great respect for President Xi. He’s been, in a true sense, a friend of mine for a long period of time.
“I think that we’ll end up working out something that’s very good for both countries. I look forward to it.”
Watch: ‘Bring your best deal to Washington,’ Bessent tells countries
The cabinet meeting now turns to US treasury secretary Scott Bessent, who says a process is being put in place to negotiate with countries over trade and tariffs.
He says countries have been calling him up saying that they are pleased Bessent will be negotiating, to which he has reminded them that Trump will also be involved, which makes the president smile.
“So bring your best deal,” he adds.