Inflation, supply chains, food & oil, etc.
DiscussãoPro and Con
Entre no LibraryThing para poder publicar.
1margd
Robert Reich @RBReich | 2:49 PM · May 12, 2022:
Berkeley professor, former Secretary of Labor.
Starbucks raised prices after reporting a 31% increase in profits.
Same with Tyson, who posted $1 billion in profits last quarter — a 48% increase from the first quarter of 2021.
Get the picture?
( Comments at https://twitter.com/RBReich/status/1524823982708363264 )
Berkeley professor, former Secretary of Labor.
Starbucks raised prices after reporting a 31% increase in profits.
Same with Tyson, who posted $1 billion in profits last quarter — a 48% increase from the first quarter of 2021.
Get the picture?
( Comments at https://twitter.com/RBReich/status/1524823982708363264 )
2mamzel
It is a tragedy that mothers aren't able to obtain formula for their babes. Someone should shoulder the blame (and not Biden like the Republicans say).
3margd
>2 mamzel: Immigrants! Some Republicans--the folks who ban abortions--say we shouldn't feed immigrant infants in the government's care! Elise Stefanic (sp?) is #2 or 3 R in the House!
Republicans Don't Think Undocumented Immigrant Babies Should Get Formula Over Americans
Republican lawmakers say sending baby formula amid a nationwide shortage to feed undocumented immigrant infants is "unconscionable."
Salvador Hernandez | 5/12/2022
...Republicans are claiming without proof that baby formula used to feed infants at immigrant detention centers is siphoning away a product in short supply and instead want "American kids" put first...
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/salvadorhernandez/republicans-immigrant-bab...
______________________________________________________
ETA
Bill Kristol (The Bulwark) @BillKristol |11:32 AM · May 13, 2022:
I know this is probably pointless to say, but it would be nice if some Republican in elected office, or running for office, or having once held office, would say clearly that of course the U.S. should follow its own laws and basic decency and feed babies in government facilities.
Quote Tweet
Matthew Gertz @MattGertz · 8h
Laura Ingraham: Migrant infants getting formula is "something that will infuriate you... that alone should win the election for the Republicans in November."
Republicans Don't Think Undocumented Immigrant Babies Should Get Formula Over Americans
Republican lawmakers say sending baby formula amid a nationwide shortage to feed undocumented immigrant infants is "unconscionable."
Salvador Hernandez | 5/12/2022
...Republicans are claiming without proof that baby formula used to feed infants at immigrant detention centers is siphoning away a product in short supply and instead want "American kids" put first...
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/salvadorhernandez/republicans-immigrant-bab...
______________________________________________________
ETA
Bill Kristol (The Bulwark) @BillKristol |11:32 AM · May 13, 2022:
I know this is probably pointless to say, but it would be nice if some Republican in elected office, or running for office, or having once held office, would say clearly that of course the U.S. should follow its own laws and basic decency and feed babies in government facilities.
Quote Tweet
Matthew Gertz @MattGertz · 8h
Laura Ingraham: Migrant infants getting formula is "something that will infuriate you... that alone should win the election for the Republicans in November."
4rastaphrog
>3 margd: ...Republicans are claiming without proof that baby formula used to feed infants at immigrant detention centers is siphoning away a product in short supply and instead want "American kids" put first...
Working in a supermarket, and being the primary person who packs out baby products, I can confidently say that this is pure bullshit. Depending on which formulas are being used at the detention centers, it would probably come to a few thousand cases at most. Spread those around the country and it wouldn't even give every place that sells formula an extra case.
Working in a supermarket, and being the primary person who packs out baby products, I can confidently say that this is pure bullshit. Depending on which formulas are being used at the detention centers, it would probably come to a few thousand cases at most. Spread those around the country and it wouldn't even give every place that sells formula an extra case.
5margd
An inflation conspiracy theory is infecting the Democratic Party
Catherine Rampell | May 12, 2022
..Here is how economists explain the recent run-up in inflation: Demand is strong, thanks to pandemic-forced savings plus expansionary government policies (stimulus payments, low interest rates, etc.). Meanwhile, supply remains constrained by covid-related disruptions, labor shortages, other unfortunate shocks. Companies can’t ramp up production quickly enough to procure all the stuff that consumers want to buy, whether that “stuff” is oil, furniture or eggs.
Consumers still want to buy all this stuff, though, and Americans overall have an unusually high amount of cash on hand. So they are willing to pay more. That pushes prices up.
The solution to the broader increase in prices, then, is ramping up supply (e.g., getting more workers in the labor force, removing trade barriers, encouraging oil-drilling); and/or, tamping down demand (e.g., raising interest rates)...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/05/12/democratic-conspiracy-theory-...
Catherine Rampell | May 12, 2022
..Here is how economists explain the recent run-up in inflation: Demand is strong, thanks to pandemic-forced savings plus expansionary government policies (stimulus payments, low interest rates, etc.). Meanwhile, supply remains constrained by covid-related disruptions, labor shortages, other unfortunate shocks. Companies can’t ramp up production quickly enough to procure all the stuff that consumers want to buy, whether that “stuff” is oil, furniture or eggs.
Consumers still want to buy all this stuff, though, and Americans overall have an unusually high amount of cash on hand. So they are willing to pay more. That pushes prices up.
The solution to the broader increase in prices, then, is ramping up supply (e.g., getting more workers in the labor force, removing trade barriers, encouraging oil-drilling); and/or, tamping down demand (e.g., raising interest rates)...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/05/12/democratic-conspiracy-theory-...
6mamzel
What confuses me is not that prices are going up but that they are doubling over night. I went to the store yesterday and was flabbergasted that the price of a bunch of kale went from $1.49 to $2.89 in one week. And that was just one item that I pay attention to! The weekly grocery bill for just my husband and me has gone through the roof!
7aspirit
Grocery prices were going to increase dramatically. I'm surprised it wasn't happening sooner, but now there's even more costly problems in agriculture, manufacturing, and distribution. With the wealthiest company owners (including politicians!) ensuring their profits aren't reduced, all the rest of us have to pay for years of their bad decisions.
8margd
Abbott reaches deal with FDA to reopen baby formula plant linked to shortage
Herb Scribner 16 May 2022
...Why it matters: The U.S. has faced a massive baby formula shortage because of supply chain issues compounded by the closure of Abbott's facility in Sturgis, Michigan due to an FDA recall (Cronobacter sakazakii, a bacterium that can potentially cause severe foodborne illness primarily in infants https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-provides-new-updates-act... )...
Driving the news: Abbott said in a statement Monday that it can restart operating the site in two weeks. It will take another six to eight weeks before the baby formula can make its way onto shelves.
Details: The FDA said Abbott agreed to make corrections to its facility following the recall that will "ultimately result in an increase of infant formula products."
The FDA said that Abbott will have to meet FDA standards when the facility reopens.
If any contamination is found, Abbott must tell the FDA about it and "conduct a root-cause investigation before resuming production," the FDA said...
https://www.axios.com/2022/05/16/abbott-baby-formula-fda-sturgis-michigan
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President Biden @POTUS | 6:03 PM · May 18, 2022:
United States government official
I’m taking two new steps to increase baby formula supply:
- Invoking the Defense Production Act to increase domestic production
- Launching Operation Fly Formula to use federal planes to fly formula in from abroad (Ireland?)
We're making sure safe formula gets to all who need it.
____________________________________________
Meanwhile:
192 Republicans vote against $28 million for baby formula shortage
https://twitter.com/Acyn/status/1527101944086401025
12 Rs vote for $28 million for baby formula shortage (list)
https://twitter.com/axidentaliberal/status/1527156918904672256/photo/2
Stefanik was not among the 12 who voted for baby formula $...
Elise Stefanik @EliseStefanik | 2:52 PM · May 13, 2022:
(#NY21 Congresswoman. House GOP Conference Chair)
The White House, House Dems, & usual pedo grifters are so out of touch with the American people that rather than present ANY PLAN or urgency to address the nationwide baby formula crisis, they double down on sending pallets of formula to the southern border. Joe Biden has NO PLAN
Herb Scribner 16 May 2022
...Why it matters: The U.S. has faced a massive baby formula shortage because of supply chain issues compounded by the closure of Abbott's facility in Sturgis, Michigan due to an FDA recall (Cronobacter sakazakii, a bacterium that can potentially cause severe foodborne illness primarily in infants https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-provides-new-updates-act... )...
Driving the news: Abbott said in a statement Monday that it can restart operating the site in two weeks. It will take another six to eight weeks before the baby formula can make its way onto shelves.
Details: The FDA said Abbott agreed to make corrections to its facility following the recall that will "ultimately result in an increase of infant formula products."
The FDA said that Abbott will have to meet FDA standards when the facility reopens.
If any contamination is found, Abbott must tell the FDA about it and "conduct a root-cause investigation before resuming production," the FDA said...
https://www.axios.com/2022/05/16/abbott-baby-formula-fda-sturgis-michigan
----------------------------------------------------------
President Biden @POTUS | 6:03 PM · May 18, 2022:
United States government official
I’m taking two new steps to increase baby formula supply:
- Invoking the Defense Production Act to increase domestic production
- Launching Operation Fly Formula to use federal planes to fly formula in from abroad (Ireland?)
We're making sure safe formula gets to all who need it.
____________________________________________
Meanwhile:
192 Republicans vote against $28 million for baby formula shortage
https://twitter.com/Acyn/status/1527101944086401025
12 Rs vote for $28 million for baby formula shortage (list)
https://twitter.com/axidentaliberal/status/1527156918904672256/photo/2
Stefanik was not among the 12 who voted for baby formula $...
Elise Stefanik @EliseStefanik | 2:52 PM · May 13, 2022:
(#NY21 Congresswoman. House GOP Conference Chair)
The White House, House Dems, & usual pedo grifters are so out of touch with the American people that rather than present ANY PLAN or urgency to address the nationwide baby formula crisis, they double down on sending pallets of formula to the southern border. Joe Biden has NO PLAN
9margd
Heather Long (WaPo) @byHeatherLong | 5:04 PM · May 19, 2022:
Sri Lanka just defaulted on debt for the 1st time in its history.
It's the latest warning sign of just how bad things are getting in much of the developing world: High inflation, very little food and fuel, and gov'ts out of $$ and deeply in debt.
Sri Lanka defaults on debt for first time in its history
Peter Hoskins | 19 May 2022
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-61505842
Sri Lanka just defaulted on debt for the 1st time in its history.
It's the latest warning sign of just how bad things are getting in much of the developing world: High inflation, very little food and fuel, and gov'ts out of $$ and deeply in debt.
Sri Lanka defaults on debt for first time in its history
Peter Hoskins | 19 May 2022
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-61505842
10margd
There’s a Price Gouging Smoking Gun In Tyson’s Earnings Report
New evidence of America's biggest meat processor driving up inflation for its own profit.
Eric Gardner | May 19 2022
...In the second quarter of 2022, the Arkansas-based conglomerate estimated that it responded to roughly $1.5 billion in higher costs with almost $2 billion in corresponding price increases. That difference is potentially half a billion dollars paid directly out of consumers’ pockets.
Tyson Foods’ quarter was one of the most profitable in recent memory. The company earned $1.2 billion on $13 billion worth of sales, while expanding its operating margin by 38% from the same quarter last year, generating more profit on every dollar of sales than it has in any second quarter in over a decade.
Critically, Tyson’s profits were delivered despite the company lacking significant brand power that’s typically associated with premium pricing. Companies like P&G, Coca-Cola and Clorox spend billions of dollars each year establishing premium brands in order to command higher prices from consumers. But according to Wall Street research firm Morningstar, approximately 80% of Tyson’s products lack significant brand equity and are considered “undifferentiated” or “commoditized.”
In a competitive market, Tyson would struggle to raise prices for largely undifferentiated products, let alone pass on inflation to consumers. Instead, it would need to absorb additional costs and keep prices low to risk a competitor gaining market share by undercutting them on price.
However, what Tyson lacks in brand equity, it makes up for in raw market power. With $47 billion in annual revenue, Tyson Foods is the number one beef and chicken processor in America and one of four firms that dominate America’s meat processing industry.
...“We’re really positioned in a place where, from an elasticity perspective, we’re going to capture the consumer,” CFO Stewart Glendinning told the same industry crowd, referring to the concept of a consumer’s willingness to pay higher prices. “It’s just a question of where in the portfolio they’re going to go.”
https://perfectunion.us/tyson-foods-price-gouging/
New evidence of America's biggest meat processor driving up inflation for its own profit.
Eric Gardner | May 19 2022
...In the second quarter of 2022, the Arkansas-based conglomerate estimated that it responded to roughly $1.5 billion in higher costs with almost $2 billion in corresponding price increases. That difference is potentially half a billion dollars paid directly out of consumers’ pockets.
Tyson Foods’ quarter was one of the most profitable in recent memory. The company earned $1.2 billion on $13 billion worth of sales, while expanding its operating margin by 38% from the same quarter last year, generating more profit on every dollar of sales than it has in any second quarter in over a decade.
Critically, Tyson’s profits were delivered despite the company lacking significant brand power that’s typically associated with premium pricing. Companies like P&G, Coca-Cola and Clorox spend billions of dollars each year establishing premium brands in order to command higher prices from consumers. But according to Wall Street research firm Morningstar, approximately 80% of Tyson’s products lack significant brand equity and are considered “undifferentiated” or “commoditized.”
In a competitive market, Tyson would struggle to raise prices for largely undifferentiated products, let alone pass on inflation to consumers. Instead, it would need to absorb additional costs and keep prices low to risk a competitor gaining market share by undercutting them on price.
However, what Tyson lacks in brand equity, it makes up for in raw market power. With $47 billion in annual revenue, Tyson Foods is the number one beef and chicken processor in America and one of four firms that dominate America’s meat processing industry.
...“We’re really positioned in a place where, from an elasticity perspective, we’re going to capture the consumer,” CFO Stewart Glendinning told the same industry crowd, referring to the concept of a consumer’s willingness to pay higher prices. “It’s just a question of where in the portfolio they’re going to go.”
https://perfectunion.us/tyson-foods-price-gouging/
11margd
>5 margd:
LCV – League of Conservation Voters 🌎 @LCVoters | 12:47 PM · May 19, 2022:
BIG: @HouseDemocrats have passed the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, which protects working families against price gouging.
It's unacceptable that Big Oil continues to collect record profits while #RippingOffAmericans. The Senate must pass this bill ASAP.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Pallone Floor Remarks on the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act
May 19, 2022 Press Release
Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) delivered the following remarks on the House floor today in support of H.R. 7688, the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act...
https://energycommerce.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/pallone-floor-remarks-o...
LCV – League of Conservation Voters 🌎 @LCVoters | 12:47 PM · May 19, 2022:
BIG: @HouseDemocrats have passed the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, which protects working families against price gouging.
It's unacceptable that Big Oil continues to collect record profits while #RippingOffAmericans. The Senate must pass this bill ASAP.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Pallone Floor Remarks on the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act
May 19, 2022 Press Release
Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) delivered the following remarks on the House floor today in support of H.R. 7688, the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act...
https://energycommerce.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/pallone-floor-remarks-o...
12margd
Opinion: Breastfeeding isn’t ‘free.’ Here’s what it cost me (time & money).
Alyssa Rosenberg | 31 May 2022
What’s the least helpful advice for a parent desperate to find scarce baby formula? “TRY BREASTFEEEDING! It’s free and available on demand.” “God literally designed mothers to feed their babies.” This is cruel to any parent who can’t make the milk their child needs. And it’s not true.
Even in the best-case scenario, breastfeeding isn’t free. It costs money for the supplies that keep a nursing mother comfortable and healthy enough to keep producing milk. And it costs time...I used an app to track every minute I spent nursing and pumping over the first six months of my son’s life.
...A 2005 study in the medical journal Pediatrics found that a major reason women stopped breastfeeding was physical pain...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2022/breastfeeding-cost-time...
Alyssa Rosenberg | 31 May 2022
What’s the least helpful advice for a parent desperate to find scarce baby formula? “TRY BREASTFEEEDING! It’s free and available on demand.” “God literally designed mothers to feed their babies.” This is cruel to any parent who can’t make the milk their child needs. And it’s not true.
Even in the best-case scenario, breastfeeding isn’t free. It costs money for the supplies that keep a nursing mother comfortable and healthy enough to keep producing milk. And it costs time...I used an app to track every minute I spent nursing and pumping over the first six months of my son’s life.
...A 2005 study in the medical journal Pediatrics found that a major reason women stopped breastfeeding was physical pain...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/interactive/2022/breastfeeding-cost-time...
13margd
NowThis @nowthisnews | 1:33 AM · Jun 11, 2022:
Pres. Biden on the shipping companies bringing goods into the U.S. that have raised prices by 1,000%: ‘Every once in a while, something you learn makes you viscerally angry. Like if you had the person in front of you, you’d want to pop ‘em’
Biden Calls Out Shipping Companies for Raising Prices
Pres. Biden on the shipping companies bringing goods into the U.S. that have raised prices by 1,000%
1:40 ( https://twitter.com/nowthisnews/status/1535495291276652544 )
Pres. Biden on the shipping companies bringing goods into the U.S. that have raised prices by 1,000%: ‘Every once in a while, something you learn makes you viscerally angry. Like if you had the person in front of you, you’d want to pop ‘em’
Biden Calls Out Shipping Companies for Raising Prices
Pres. Biden on the shipping companies bringing goods into the U.S. that have raised prices by 1,000%
1:40 ( https://twitter.com/nowthisnews/status/1535495291276652544 )
14mamzel
This headline doesn't make sense. It would make a pound of coffee originating in Columbia go from $4 to $44 a pound. A $30,000 car would cost $330,000. I haven't seen prices like that. Yet.
(I don't have Twitter so I didn't see the tweet.)
(I don't have Twitter so I didn't see the tweet.)
15margd
>14 mamzel: I understood it to mean that shipping costs increased 1000% (10X), not cost of the cargo?
Some increase warranted due to fuel costs and difficulties with maintaining crew in early months of COVID--illness, inability to leave ship / switch crews/ unload, etc.--but like other businesses, sounds like they took advantage to increase profits?
Some increase warranted due to fuel costs and difficulties with maintaining crew in early months of COVID--illness, inability to leave ship / switch crews/ unload, etc.--but like other businesses, sounds like they took advantage to increase profits?
16aspirit
>14 mamzel: You can likely view the tweet and its video clip without a Twitter account.
and >15 margd: The comment was about the shipping companies, not the retailers, increasing costs to that anger-inducing extreme.
There are costs in every part of the supply chain, which as a whole roughly looks like...
raw materials producers 》 packagers (for delivery to manufacturers) 》 transportation 》 manufacturers 》 transportation 》 wholesalers (storage) 》 transportation 》 retailers
Goods might be shipped by order of the retailers of the buyer, but I'm fairly certain the concern about shipping costs was mostly for transportation in the earlier parts of the chain. Many-- I'm guessing almost all-- companies that provide goods in the USA currently depend on international shipping.
and >15 margd: The comment was about the shipping companies, not the retailers, increasing costs to that anger-inducing extreme.
There are costs in every part of the supply chain, which as a whole roughly looks like...
raw materials producers 》 packagers (for delivery to manufacturers) 》 transportation 》 manufacturers 》 transportation 》 wholesalers (storage) 》 transportation 》 retailers
Goods might be shipped by order of the retailers of the buyer, but I'm fairly certain the concern about shipping costs was mostly for transportation in the earlier parts of the chain. Many-- I'm guessing almost all-- companies that provide goods in the USA currently depend on international shipping.
17mamzel
>16 aspirit: Thanks. I probably could view the tweet like you say however I don't like to access websites on my computer which would likely install cookies against my knowledge and/or wishes.
18margd
Reuters @Reuters | 7:00 PM · Aug 7, 2022:
ICYMI: BP recorded its highest profit in 14 years of just under $8.5 billion. The company credited the strong performance to ‘exceptional’ oil trading performance, strong refining margins as well as higher fuel prices
BP boosts dividend after profit hits 14-year high
Ron Bousso and Shadia Nasralla | 2 Aug 2022
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/bp-reports-q2-profit-845-billion-boosts-... https://reut.rs/3PZO0ws
ICYMI: BP recorded its highest profit in 14 years of just under $8.5 billion. The company credited the strong performance to ‘exceptional’ oil trading performance, strong refining margins as well as higher fuel prices
BP boosts dividend after profit hits 14-year high
Ron Bousso and Shadia Nasralla | 2 Aug 2022
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/bp-reports-q2-profit-845-billion-boosts-... https://reut.rs/3PZO0ws
19margd
Conor Sen @conorsen | 6:36 AM · Sep 8, 2022
Columnist for opinion. Founder of Peachtree Creek Investments. Sun Belt enthusiast. The future is a policy choice.
Biggest weekly drop yet in ocean freight rates, -14%. This (Shanghai-LA) chart is really something now:
Graph ( https://twitter.com/conorsen/status/1567824191251963905/photo/1 )
Columnist for opinion. Founder of Peachtree Creek Investments. Sun Belt enthusiast. The future is a policy choice.
Biggest weekly drop yet in ocean freight rates, -14%. This (Shanghai-LA) chart is really something now:
Graph ( https://twitter.com/conorsen/status/1567824191251963905/photo/1 )
20margd
Robert Reich @RBReich | 3:05 PM · Oct 10, 2022:
Berkeley professor, former Secretary of Labor. Co-founder, @InequalityMedia.
Make no mistake: Companies are using inflation as a smokescreen to hike prices and rake in record profits. 2021 was the most profitable year for American corporations since 1950.
_________________________________________
US Corporate Profits Soar With Margins at Widest Since 1950
Business is passing on higher costs and then some, data show
Some Democrats have blamed price-gouging for high inflation
Reade Pickert | August 25, 2022
A measure of US profit margins has reached its widest since 1950, suggesting that the prices charged by businesses are outpacing their increased costs for production and labor.
After-tax profits as a share of gross value added for non-financial corporations, a measure of aggregate profit margins, improved in the second quarter to 15.5% -- the most since 1950 -- from 14% in the first quarter, according to Commerce Department figures published Thursday.
The data show that companies overall have comfortably been able to pass on their rising cost of materials and labor to consumers. With household budgets squeezed by the rising cost of living, some firms have been able to offset any slip in demand by charging more to the customers they’ve retained -- though others like Target Corp. saw their inventories swell and were forced to discount prices in order to clear them...
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-08-25/us-corporate-profits-soar-tak...
Berkeley professor, former Secretary of Labor. Co-founder, @InequalityMedia.
Make no mistake: Companies are using inflation as a smokescreen to hike prices and rake in record profits. 2021 was the most profitable year for American corporations since 1950.
_________________________________________
US Corporate Profits Soar With Margins at Widest Since 1950
Business is passing on higher costs and then some, data show
Some Democrats have blamed price-gouging for high inflation
Reade Pickert | August 25, 2022
A measure of US profit margins has reached its widest since 1950, suggesting that the prices charged by businesses are outpacing their increased costs for production and labor.
After-tax profits as a share of gross value added for non-financial corporations, a measure of aggregate profit margins, improved in the second quarter to 15.5% -- the most since 1950 -- from 14% in the first quarter, according to Commerce Department figures published Thursday.
The data show that companies overall have comfortably been able to pass on their rising cost of materials and labor to consumers. With household budgets squeezed by the rising cost of living, some firms have been able to offset any slip in demand by charging more to the customers they’ve retained -- though others like Target Corp. saw their inventories swell and were forced to discount prices in order to clear them...
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-08-25/us-corporate-profits-soar-tak...
21margd
Rob Anderson @robanderson_stl | 9:16 AM · Oct 22, 2022:
U.S. Sector Strategist at Ned Davis Research
Exxon closed above its June high last week, also setting a new record high. 3/4
Graph ( https://twitter.com/robanderson_stl/status/1583809635152109569/photo/1 )
U.S. Sector Strategist at Ned Davis Research
Exxon closed above its June high last week, also setting a new record high. 3/4
Graph ( https://twitter.com/robanderson_stl/status/1583809635152109569/photo/1 )
22margd
Inflation: Why Canada grocers are accused of 'greedflation'
Nadine Yousif | 24 Oct 2022
Like many around the world, Canadians are struggling with the cost of food. But amid accusations of "greedflation" - taking advantage of inflation to raise prices - the country's largest grocery chains say they aren't to blame.
...For families who frequent grocery stores, the drastic increase in prices is hard to ignore. Canada's food prices in September were up 11.4% compared to 6.9% overall inflation...
...The problem isn't unique to Canada. The UK has seen a drastic rise in food prices as well - bread and cereals were up by an annual 12.4% in July, and oils and fats were up 23.4%.
So has the US, where the cost of food was up 13.5% in September compared to last year.
In all three countries, the factors driving up the cost of food are similar: a surge in demand for groceries since the start of the pandemic, coupled with Covid-19 outbreaks, has disrupted supply. Add to that the war in Ukraine, which has affected supplies of fertiliser, wheat and other crops, sending global prices soaring.
Bad weather this year has also disrupted the growth of certain crops, and fuel has gotten more expensive.
...In dollars, grocers have made an average of $1.5bn in the first two quarters of 2022, up from $800m in 2019. Their margins are also higher than pre-pandemic - 3.5% in 2022, up from 2% in 2018, despite the increase in production costs.
Grocers have attributed the higher margins to an increase in sales and efficiency.
Meanwhile, an August poll suggested that more than half of Canadians can't keep up with the current cost of living, and 78% believe grocers are to blame for soaring food prices...
(Sylvain Charlebois, a professor at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia who has been publishing an annual report on Canadian food prices since 2010)...found that while revenues did go up, gross margins for companies have increased by what he said are modest amounts.
...this doesn't rule out wrongdoing in other parts of the supply chain - from food processing to transportation.
...many welcome the decision by parliament's agriculture committee and the competition bureau to look at the grocery retail market - probes that politicians like (NDP MP Alastair) MacGregor hope will pave the way for better industry practices in the future.
"It's a good thing for Canadians", who at the very least will get some clarity on how their food is priced, said Mr Charlebois.
More on this story
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-63323636
Nadine Yousif | 24 Oct 2022
Like many around the world, Canadians are struggling with the cost of food. But amid accusations of "greedflation" - taking advantage of inflation to raise prices - the country's largest grocery chains say they aren't to blame.
...For families who frequent grocery stores, the drastic increase in prices is hard to ignore. Canada's food prices in September were up 11.4% compared to 6.9% overall inflation...
...The problem isn't unique to Canada. The UK has seen a drastic rise in food prices as well - bread and cereals were up by an annual 12.4% in July, and oils and fats were up 23.4%.
So has the US, where the cost of food was up 13.5% in September compared to last year.
In all three countries, the factors driving up the cost of food are similar: a surge in demand for groceries since the start of the pandemic, coupled with Covid-19 outbreaks, has disrupted supply. Add to that the war in Ukraine, which has affected supplies of fertiliser, wheat and other crops, sending global prices soaring.
Bad weather this year has also disrupted the growth of certain crops, and fuel has gotten more expensive.
...In dollars, grocers have made an average of $1.5bn in the first two quarters of 2022, up from $800m in 2019. Their margins are also higher than pre-pandemic - 3.5% in 2022, up from 2% in 2018, despite the increase in production costs.
Grocers have attributed the higher margins to an increase in sales and efficiency.
Meanwhile, an August poll suggested that more than half of Canadians can't keep up with the current cost of living, and 78% believe grocers are to blame for soaring food prices...
(Sylvain Charlebois, a professor at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia who has been publishing an annual report on Canadian food prices since 2010)...found that while revenues did go up, gross margins for companies have increased by what he said are modest amounts.
...this doesn't rule out wrongdoing in other parts of the supply chain - from food processing to transportation.
...many welcome the decision by parliament's agriculture committee and the competition bureau to look at the grocery retail market - probes that politicians like (NDP MP Alastair) MacGregor hope will pave the way for better industry practices in the future.
"It's a good thing for Canadians", who at the very least will get some clarity on how their food is priced, said Mr Charlebois.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-63323636
23margd
Alexander S. Vindman @AVindman | 12:48 PM · Oct 28, 2022:
Vet. NYT Best-selling Author. Ex NSC/ WH Staffer. Senior Advisor @votevets. Senior Fellow, FPI & DIA, SAIS JHU 22' #HereRightMatters
It’s past time for a windfall tax on big oil.
It’s unfair that the middle & working classes fund enormous profit-margins for a what amounts to a cartel monopoly, likely also playing politics.
If big oil wasn’t price gouging gas would have cost under $3.
Quote Tweet
Josh Schwerin @JoshSchwerin · 22h
Communicator looking to make a difference. Founder of SaratogaStrats. Have been @PrioritiesUSA @HillaryClinton @TerryMcAuliffe @DCCC
.
Q3 profits for Exxon: $20 billion
Q3 profits for Chevron: $11 billion
Q3 profits for Shell: $9.5 billion
Republicans who voted to stop oil companies from price gouging: 0
Vet. NYT Best-selling Author. Ex NSC/ WH Staffer. Senior Advisor @votevets. Senior Fellow, FPI & DIA, SAIS JHU 22' #HereRightMatters
It’s past time for a windfall tax on big oil.
It’s unfair that the middle & working classes fund enormous profit-margins for a what amounts to a cartel monopoly, likely also playing politics.
If big oil wasn’t price gouging gas would have cost under $3.
Quote Tweet
Josh Schwerin @JoshSchwerin · 22h
Communicator looking to make a difference. Founder of SaratogaStrats. Have been @PrioritiesUSA @HillaryClinton @TerryMcAuliffe @DCCC
.
Q3 profits for Exxon: $20 billion
Q3 profits for Chevron: $11 billion
Q3 profits for Shell: $9.5 billion
Republicans who voted to stop oil companies from price gouging: 0
24margd
The Long COVID Survival Guide: How to Take Care of Yourself and What Comes Next―Stories and Advice from Twenty Long-Haulers and Experts
by Fiona Lowenstein | Nov 8, 2022
Afterword by Dr Akiko Iwasaki (Yale)
288 p.
by Fiona Lowenstein | Nov 8, 2022
Afterword by Dr Akiko Iwasaki (Yale)
288 p.
25John5918
Faith, Civil Entities Oppose Bill Gates’ “high-tech solutions” to Reduce Hunger in Africa (ACI Africa)
Faith and civil organizations focused on food sovereignty and justice worldwide have castigated Bill Gates for proposing “high-tech solutions” including genetic engineering, new breeding technologies, and digital agriculture to address the hunger crisis in Africa. In a statement shared with ACI Africa Wednesday, November 16, officials of the 50 organizations say African farmers and organizations are not short of practical solutions and innovations to address the crisis... “You make a number of claims that are inaccurate and need to be challenged. Both pieces admit that the world currently produces enough food to adequately feed all the earth's inhabitants, yet you continue to fundamentally misdiagnose the problem as relating to low productivity; we do not need to increase production as much as to assure more equitable access to food,” they say... Gates' idea that the Green Revolution of the mid-20th century needs to be replicated now to address hunger and that better seeds produced by large companies are required to cope with climate change are “distorted”... Gates' support for a new Green Revolution “demonstrates willful ignorance about history and about the root causes of hunger (which are by and large about political and economic arrangements, and what the economist Amartya Sen famously referred to as entitlements, not about a global lack of food),” they say...
