China readies price controls as it tries to tackle rising food inflation November 16, 2010 CHINA will unveil food price controls and crack down on speculation in agricultural commodities to contain inflationary pressure that its central bank governor highlighted as a risk yesterday. With consumer prices rising at their fastest pace in more than two years, the National Development and Reform Commission, the country’s top planning agency, is preparing a [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING November 9, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES EX-CLINTON AIDE TO ADVISE NEWS CORP ON EDUCATION Joel Klein, the chancellor of New York City’s schools and former deputy White House counsel to Bill Clinton, is joining News Corp as a senior adviser to Rupert Murdoch, as the company looks to make investments in educational start-ups. ASIAN EQUITY HEDGE FUNDS OUTPERFORM Asian [...]
J Sainsbury outpaces rivals as it sees its market share inch higher November 9, 2010 UK SUPERMARKET sales are rising slightly more than food price inflation, with the third largest grocer J Sainsbury outpacing its major rivals, market researchers Kantar Worldpanel said yesterday. Grocery sales climbed four per cent in the 12 weeks ended 31 October, helped by a three per cent rise in inflation — little changed from the [...]
Retail sales failed to pick up in October November 8, 2010 RETAIL sales failed to revive in October as weak consumer confidence in the lead up to the comprehensive spending review undermined growth the British Retail Consortium (BRC) will say today. The latest figures show total retail sales grew by 2.4 per cent year-on-year in October but this compared to growth of 5.9 per cent for [...]
There’s still no such thing as a free lunch November 7, 2010 MILTON Friedman said that there is no such thing as a free lunch, but even he might have been surprised by the cost of a meal today. World food prices have soared back up to levels last seen in the crisis of 2007-2008, leading some to warn of renewed food riots. Russia recently extended its [...]
Factory gate inflation in slim rise November 5, 2010 Factory gate inflation picked up slightly in October but was lower than expected after the biggest reworking of the official data since 1992, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed. The ONS said annual producer output price inflation picked up to four per cent in October from 3.8 percent in September, against forecasts for [...]
Stock markets are wrong about QE2 November 5, 2010 YESTERDAY’S stock market rebound is the proof that investors don’t always get it right – or at least, that they still love to get drunk on the prospect of cheap money. Stock markets in the US and UK jumped, taking equities back to the time when Lehman Brothers was just another big investment bank. One [...]
Morrison sales in slim rise November 4, 2010 Wm Morrison Supermarkets met forecasts with a modest rise in third-quarter underlying sales as the benefits from a small rise in food price inflation were held back by subdued consumer spending. Britain’s fourth-biggest grocer said sales at stores open over a year rose 1.3 per cent, excluding petrol and VAT sales tax, in the 13 [...]
Time to take inflation seriously again November 2, 2010 WHO said inflation is no longer a danger? Wherever one looks, prices are rising, demolishing the flimsy case made by the deflationistas. The British Retail Consortium/Nielsen shop price index out this morning confirms that the cost of living is continuing to go up, hitting ordinary folk and fuelling general negativity about the state of the [...]
SUGAR HITS NEW 30-YEAR PEAK November 2, 2010 SUGAR is trading at its highest level for three decades, raising fears about global food price inflation. The soft commodity yesterday surpassed the 29-year high it hit in February this year, on concern about low crop yields in Brazil and restricted exports from India. Raw sugar futures topped 30.6 cents per pound yesterday before settling [...]