Food prices soar.

2 words: PB & J.

Food prices increase most in 36 years
Labor Department says Producer Price Index rose 1.6 percent on higher food costs; doubled from previous month

AP) WASHINGTON - Wholesale prices jumped last month by the most in nearly two years due to higher energy costs and the steepest rise in food prices in 36 years. Excluding those volatile categories, inflation was tame.

Separately, the Commerce Department said home construction plunged to a seasonally adjusted 479,000 homes last month, down 22.5 percent from the previous month. It was lowest level since April 2009, and the second-lowest on records dating back more than a half-century.

The building pace is far below the 1.2 million units a year that economists consider healthy.

But economists expect the earthquake in Japan to lower oil prices for the next month or two, which should temper increases in wholesale prices in coming months. Japan is a big oil consumer, and its economy will suffer in the aftermath of the quake. But as the country begins to rebuild later this year, the cost of oil and other raw materials, such as steel and cement, could rise.

Interesting possible parrallel to the 2007 Indonesian earthquakes devastation influencing prices in 2008. Now, with Japan, an even bigger economy...

"Eshlemon wrote:

Interesting possible parrallel to the 2007 Indonesian earthquakes devastation influencing prices in 2008. Now, with Japan, an even bigger economy...

Was just going to post that Eshelmon, you could see it coming if anyone halfway paid attention, declining dollar, ethanol, bad crops in places such as Russia and S America, plus side is this is a good time to be a farmer or farming concern in the US.

"padre31 wrote:

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/reeling_in_9O0R4mmAOfbbJ1LDugVBcI

Ah, the Carter Era is back, fortunately now we do have Ramen Noodles, unlike in 78-80, but pretty much the same thing happened.

Count down to Pollyanna contact in 4..3..2..:lol:

Food prices have been going up for quite awhile now, despite what we've been told.
btw: have you seen the price of ramen noodles lately? It wasn't too long ago you could buy a pack of them for 10 cents all day long.

"DeDolfan wrote:

Food prices have been going up for quite awhile now, despite what we've been told.
btw: have you seen the price of ramen noodles lately? It wasn't too long ago you could buy a pack of them for 10 cents all day long.

Yep, across the board even the less expensive beef like london broils that I prefer to BBQ are now almost twice as expensive as they were maybe 3 yrs ago.

"padre31 wrote:

Yep, across the board even the less expensive beef like london broils that I prefer to BBQ are now almost twice as expensive as they were maybe 3 yrs ago.

I prefer rib eyes myself. I used to be able to buy them for $3.99, on sale. Now I'm lucky to find them for $5.99, on sale.
Coffee is going out of sight.......... Things are going up a lot more than my income.

"DeDolfan wrote:

I prefer rib eyes myself. I used to be able to buy them for $3.99, on sale. Now I'm lucky to find them for $5.99, on sale.
Coffee is going out of sight.......... Things are going up a lot more than my income.

Shoot, have not had a ribeye in literal yrs De, two go for 12 bucks or more here, that is one london broil and a couple of pd one at that, which leaves leftovers which 2 ribeyes do not.

Have switched to black tea as coffee is more of delicacy now rather then every morning pick me up as even the cheapy coffee is no longer all that cheap.

Driving much much less as well.

I find it INCREDIBLE that they dont take food prices into account when determining inflation.....honestly what better way to determine inflation than the price of food??

"finyank13 wrote:

I find it INCREDIBLE that they dont take food prices into account when determining inflation.....honestly what better way to determine inflation than the price of food??

If they did, then they'd have to pay employees more.

Food has been going up in price for years now.

"Finascious D wrote:

If they did, then they'd have to pay employees more.

Food has been going up in price for years now.

and we wouldnt want to pay those employees any more than we have too right.....

"lmeister3 wrote:

2 words: PB & J.

Nah, see you add the pb to dry, cooked ramen noodles and..

"Finascious D wrote:

If they did, then they'd have to pay employees more.

Food has been going up in price for years now.

I used to always think that they did but, as you say food prices have been going up for years, it's pretty easy to see that they don't. IMO, they should use the costs of everything across the board to get an overall inflation rate but that won't tell the complete story. They then should come up with a sub category to obtain a fair inflation rate for the average joe. But if they keep certain things out of their calculations, then leave out the high end stuff that the average person can't even touch. calculate things like basic staples, things people need to "survive", median priced homes, etc. who cares if a 50 room mansion or a rolls royce cost 5% more to build. The people buying those things are not impacted in the same way as the average person. But this is how numbers are skewed. There are a lot of things for the average person that are tied to inflation. Raises and benefits, etc.

Doesnt a lower dollar value drive up the price of food as well?

"vt_dolfan wrote:

Doesnt a lower dollar value drive up the price of food as well?

Yes, especially for food products that are typically exported, as the foriegn currency makes it more profitable to sell overseas which means prices inside the US have to rise to meet the price that is commanded.

Wet spring, lousy harvest mean higher food prices

-Link-

U.S. food prices are expected to stay high through 2012 because a wet spring will likely cut the size of this fall's corn harvest.

And cotton has woes of its own, but for the opposite reason: a drought in Texas.

The government said on Thursday that The United States will have a surplus of just 695 million bushels of corn next year, less than the 900 million estimated last month.

The Agriculture Department said rain delayed planting schedules and will likely diminish crops by harvest time in September. This followed a more optimistic forecast in May, which predicted a drop in corn exports that could have replenished U.S. food supplies and eased prices.

More expensive grain has led to food price increases this year. Manufacturers and grocery stores have passed higher costs on to consumers. For all of 2011, the USDA predicts food prices will rise 3 percent to 4 percent.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/08/18/national/main20094058.shtml?tag=cbsnewsMainColumnArea

"Eshlemon wrote:

Interesting possible parrallel to the 2007 Indonesian earthquakes devastation influencing prices in 2008. Now, with Japan, an even bigger economy...

"padre31 wrote:

Was just going to post that Eshelmon, you could see it coming if anyone halfway paid attention, declining dollar, ethanol, bad crops in places such as Russia and S America, plus side is this is a good time to be a farmer or farming concern in the US.

Another "padre bump"...

CBS/AP) NEW YORK - More signs of economic weakness sent stocks tumbling around the world Thursday.

Economic reports in the U.S. and Japan were the catalyst for the drop. The number of people who applied for unemployment benefits last week was higher than expected. And a report on inflation showed that consumers were paying more for gasoline, food and clothes. Japan said its exports fell 3.3 percent in July from a year earlier — the fifth straight month that exports fell for the world's third-largest economy.

While it doesn't compare to the tragedy all the people of Japan suffered, this is going to be much worse than the Indonesian disaster impact on the global economy.

Worries about Europe's debt problems also hang over the markets. Some countries have borrowed so much that they may need help repaying their debts. A default by any country would hurt the European banks that hold those European government bonds. U.S. regulators are looking at the U.S. arms of big European banks to see if they have reliable access to funds, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.

Darn you Europe, stop borrowing and get your house in order like us.

Inflation at the consumer level rose to 0.5 percent in July. That compares with a 0.2 percent drop in June and is the highest level since March. After ignoring price rises for food and energy, the underlying inflation rate was 0.2 percent last month. That's what economists expected.

Inflation doesn't matter as long as you don't eat or use energy. Or should be if you don't make your own food...I'm bullish on the Amish. Wonder if Bernake still plans a QE3 to increase inflation?

And this is the good news?

Jill Schlesinger notes there is some good news in this mess: As panic ensues, investors are pouring money into the treasury market, driving down yields to historic lows. That means mortgage rates are sinking.