A customer scrambles for eggs at a H-E-B grocery store on February 08, 2023 in Austin, Texas, probably shocked to see the yolk’s on them with the egg-ceptional 50% price drop since December’s record highs, as per Urner Barry data. It’s no wonder they’re feeling egg-static!

Things turn egg-scruciating when the New York Federal Reserve cracks up the conversation with a survey showing that consumers aren’t egg-specting sunny-side up financial situations. Instead, they foresee an inflation jump of half a percentage point, scrambling up to a 4.7% annual gain, according to the central bank branch’s monthly Survey of Consumer Egg-spectations for March.

This egg-ncreasing outlook is the first since October, and it counteracts the cozy narrative spun by egg-spert Fed officials who believe inflation will cool down like a morning omelette after a few interest rate increases kick in. They poach-ed their idea from recent economic projections, hinting at a mellow 2.5% inflation, including food and energy prices, by 2024.

Deviled by a one-year outlook that’s down from 6.6% at the same time in 2022, it still dashes way ahead of the Fed’s humble 2% inflation goal. Consumers, however, aren’t totally egg-noring future horizons. They’re juggling between 2.8% and 2.5% expectations for three- and five-year periods.

In an unexpected whisk, consumers predict gas prices to rise by just 4.6% in the year ahead – slightly less than they egg-spected in February. It seems they don’t mind a few sunny-side up drives. Food prices, though, would be up 5.9%, causing a 1.4 percentage point decrease from last month’s survey.

To top it off, consumers are scrambling to find credit – only to realize their access to it is now egg-spired. Cue the sad trombone (and maybe some toast) for this egg-ceptionally tough situation they’re in!