January 20-24: Egg Prices, Executive Orders, & More
This week was light on economic data releases but heavy on economic news; President Trump started his second term with an onslaught of executive orders that ranged from good, to silly, to “blatantly unconstitutional.” This AP rundown of all the orders provides a good overview.
Monday
MLK Day
There are a lot of different takes out there on MLK’s economic views. This brief primer from Axios is a pretty good (and short) overview.
Tuesday
Egg Prices
Egg prices are at an all-time high due to bird flu and will likely go higher in the coming weeks. I’ll be massively relieved if expensive eggs is the worst thing that comes from this round of avian flu.
TSA Checkpoint Travel Numbers
Air travel is about 5% above 2024 levels over the past week, according to TSA data. This is reassuring—travel volumes were subdued to start the year, but we can now pretty conclusively chalk that up to bad weather.
Gas Prices & Diesel Prices
Gas prices increased to $3.23/gallon this week—the highest price since the end of October—and should keep rising as we head toward Spring.

Diesel prices rose sharply and, at $3.72/gallon, are at the highest level since early August. This weekly increase has a lot to do with frigid temperatures.
Wednesday
Mortgage Applications
Mortgage applications were essentially unchanged last week, rising 0.1%. Purchases are up slightly, refinances are down slightly. Both remain exceptionally low.