Chinese Premier Wen says fighting inflation is priority February 27, 2011 FIGHTING inflation is a priority for China and the government must ward off threats to social stability stemming from rapid price increases, Premier Wen Jiabao said yesterday. Wen’s comments ahead of China’s annual parliament session from 5 March showed the sensitivity among ruling Communist Party leaders to public grumbling about rising real estate and food [...]
Tesco targets Asda in new price scheme February 27, 2011 TESCO will today start a new supermarket price war by introducing £200m worth of reductions. The retailer plans to lower prices on more than 1,000 everyday products including bread, meat, vegetables and fruits, and medicines across all of its UK stores. The key target in Tesco’s latest promotion is rival Asda – owned by US supermarket giant [...]
The knock-on cost of pricey commodities February 27, 2011 Inflation is the word on everyone’s lips at the moment. RPI inflation – the measure that best reflects the true rise in the cost of living in the UK – is now at 5.1 per cent a year as producers raise prices to protect their profits. But even the biggest brand owners are struggling to [...]
Shoppers hit by soaring petrol price February 24, 2011 RETAIL sales growth slowed substantially this month, with consumers increasingly squeezed by surging petrol prices, weak wage growth and spiralling price inflation. Elevated oil prices, driven up in recent weeks by the crisis in the Middle East and surging Chinese demand, are set to drive petrol close to £1.40 a litre, some observers said. The [...]
High food prices to continue February 24, 2011 The US government yesterday warned that the world is to face extremely high food prices for a prolonged period despite efforts to reduce levels by planting more crops. It could take take several years to restore stocks of wheat, corn and soyabeans to comfortable levels, the US Department of Agriculture said, and until then farm-gate [...]
Euro holds strong as ECB weighs up inflation risks February 22, 2011 THE euro held up against the dollar yesterday, as chaos in Libya was offset by hawkish rhetoric from a senior European Central Bank official. Having dropped as much as one per cent against the dollar as the Libyan crisis escalated, the euro recovered to test $1.37 (£0.85) following the comments by ECB policymaker Yves Mersch. [...]
Food inflation fears grow in UK February 22, 2011 Over nine out of ten shoppers expect further food price inflation in the next 12 months, grocery research firm IGD said yesterday. Price pressure are increasingly feared by consumers, its survey showed. A third of respondents believe food will become “much more expensive” in the next year. Last October, just 19 per cent feared “much [...]
Why I don’t believe rates should be going up February 20, 2011 The Bank of England releases its latest minutes this week and so the great rate debate continues. Will anybody have joined Andrew Sentance and Martin Weale in voting to hike? Many argue raising domestic rates can’t curb imported inflation but Sentance points out it might strengthen sterling, which would help. In practice, every currency analyst [...]
S&P 500 is on a great rolling boil February 20, 2011 BRING up to a rolling boil then leave for…. How long exactly? That is precisely the question that spread betters everywhere are asking about the S&P 500. It’s been climbing for two years now, smashing through glass ceilings like a highly caffeinated new-age woman. But – realistically – how long can the rally last? The [...]
Core price pressures grow for US February 17, 2011 AMERICA’S recovery was boosted yesterday, with several data releases boding well for the world’s largest economy. However, the Federal Reserve faces more criticism after core inflation rose at its highest rate for over a year. Consumer price inflation for January came in higher than expected, at 0.4 per cent month-on-month. Core prices – excluding food [...]