Many families have adjusted their spending patterns due to the volatile prices caused by several factors including tariffs introduced early this year by President Donald Trump.

One of the country’s largest supermarket chains, Kroger, announced last week that spending habits are changing with consumers still facing uncertainty over tariffs and the overall economic environment with many choosing to dine at home rather than ear out. 

Many other consumer watchdogs have also reported this new phenomenon as wages remain stagnant while prices continue to soar.

The price of eggs has been the first major indicator of the soaring prices. 

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics the average price for a dozen Grade A eggs declined to $5.12 last month after reaching a record $6.23, the first drop since March 1984 but the prices remained the highest of all time. 

Our guest in our podcast, Raphael Mthombeni, says the prices of most goods has gone up in recent days amid the economic uncertainty and people are grappling with prices that increase almost on a daily basis.

“I think it’s not just the tariffs that are causing the prices to go up but the whole economy and the uncertainty surround it are responsible for these hikes,” he said.

Federal Reserve Chair, Jerome Powell says goods price inflation will pick up over the course of the summer as President Trump’s tariffs work their way to U.S. consumers. 

“Ultimately, the cost of the tariffs must be paid, and some of it will fall on the end consumer,” Powell told a news conference after again the Fed held rates steady.

Mthombeni, a resident of Texas, said: “In the past, when I first came to live in Texas in 2001, I could fill up a shopping cart with only less than $100 but now that amount does not buy much.”