Abdelrahman
In the early days of President Donald Trump’s administration, consumers are noticing a rise in the prices of various goods and services.
The cost of eggs has reached an unprecedented $5 per dozen, marking a new high. While certain essentials like bread, electricity, gasoline, and natural gas have experienced modest increases, according to the recent Consumer Price Index (CPI) data, these changes vary across products.
Before adjusting your spending plan for a dozen Grade A eggs, it’s worth noting that not all grocery items are experiencing price hikes. In January, staples such as milk, oranges, tomatoes, and ground beef saw slight price reductions, while prices for bananas and poultry remained stable.
Though many of these fluctuations in prices aren’t directly attributed to government policies, they may soon be affected by new tariffs and potential international trade disputes, which could impact average consumer prices at the grocery store and the gas pump.
The Tribune is monitoring 11 essential consumer goods — eggs, milk, bread, bananas, oranges, tomatoes, chicken, ground beef, gasoline, electricity, and natural gas — to observe price changes during this new administration. This report will be updated monthly with data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
To check the average price of a specific item in the U.S., click the dropdown arrow below and select the desired product.
Eggs
Egg prices remain elevated, influenced by a significant outbreak of bird flu.
January saw a 20% rise in egg prices compared to December, with the average cost for a dozen large Grade A eggs now sitting at $4.95 nationwide. In some grocery stores around the Chicago area, prices have skyrocketed to over $7 per dozen.
Previously, similar price spikes occurred in winter 2023 due to avian influenza, which caused supply shortages and increased consumer costs.
Milk
The current national average for a gallon of whole milk is approximately $4.03, reflecting a 2% decrease since December 2024. Prices have consistently hovered around $4 for nearly the last three years, not falling below $3.50 since April 2021.
Bread
Bread has also experienced a minor price rise, averaging about $1.93 per pound in January. While fluctuations have been minimal over the past year, the cost remains significantly higher than two to three years ago — approximately 43% higher than five years prior.
Bananas
In contrast, bananas have remained a budget-friendly option, costing about $0.62 per pound as of January. Prices have fluctuated by no more than 5 cents since January 2018.
Oranges
Good news for consumers: orange prices have dropped more than 15% since the peak in October. While still above normal levels, this decrease aligns with the seasonal trends in fruit pricing, where orange prices typically hit their lowest in winter before rising in spring and summer, peaking in fall.
The average cost for navel oranges now stands at $1.53 per pound across the U.S.
Tomatoes
Not traditionally recognized as a staple, tomatoes are vital in many popular dishes, including pasta, pizza, and salads. Currently, field-grown tomatoes average $2.05 per pound. This marks a steady increase, roughly 30 cents above the two-decade average, despite being well below past peaks in the early 2000s and early 2016.
Chicken
While chicken prices have also felt the impact of bird flu, they haven’t seen the same dramatic increases as egg prices. The national average price reached $2.08 per pound in November but dipped slightly to $2.06 per pound in January.
Ground Beef
Ground beef prices are on the rise, with the average cost of 100% beef ground chuck priced at $5.50 per pound, reflecting a 34% increase over the past five years. However, this represents a slight decrease of 1.4% since December.
Electricity
The national average price for electricity was approximately 18 cents per kilowatt-hour in January. Although this rate has been relatively stable since last May, it has gradually risen since 2020, at about 1 cent per year.
Gasoline
Consumers may find some relief at the gas station. Despite a slight increase from December to January, the average cost of gasoline has been trending downwards recently, now sitting at $3.21 per gallon, the lowest since June 2021.
In Chicago, the average price is roughly 12 cents higher, around $3.33 per gallon, per the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Natural Gas
The cost of natural gas has decreased from historic highs over the last two years, with the average now at $1.55 per therm. While this is significantly lower than the spikes seen in mid-2022 to early 2023, prices remain nearly 40 cents above the 20-year average and have experienced a slight month-over-month increase.
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