Food prices - Patong expensive

[Nicke]

LIL have mentioned food prices on the rise a few times. Now Ead also start to mention that... and I also learned that the fresh food market in Kathu (on the other side of Patong hill) is a lot cheaper. Lot of things is half price there, so Ead have started to buy food there now and look like many girls in Patong do same.

Just to let you know...

[ATMwalking]

I've been informed of the same. There has been a lot of inflation in the basic staples (especially cooking oil).

But you really need to load up to make crossing the hill worth while I'd think. I thought Carefour would help on this...no?

[LivinLOS]

Inflation is going to run like a malibu wildfire through savers assets..

2 cut and pastes from bits I read in last day or two.

Back to reality, Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures soared by the daily 90-cent limit or 8% to $12 per bushel, and are up 160% from a year ago. Spring wheat futures on the Minneapolis Grain Exchange staged a historic rally on Feb 25th, rising more than 25% in a single day after the exchange lifted daily trading limits on the front March contract. March spring wheat settled at $24.00 per bushel, up $4.75, after reaching $25.00, the highest-ever price for any US wheat contract.

Soybean futures for July delivery rallied to a record $15 /bushel, up 90% from a year ago, fueled by aggressive Chinese demand for soybeans and soy-oil. China’s soybean imports jumped 41.5% in January to 3.4 million metric tons from a year earlier, and demand is expected to rise ahead of the Beijing Olympics. China bought up to 25 cargoes of soybeans and 300,000 tons of soy-oil last week alone. Rough rice is up 70% from a year ago, a big worry in Asia, where more than two billion people depend on rice as their main source of calories and protein each day.

Platinum is up 90% to $2,145 /oz, amid supply disruptions from South Africa, cocoa futures are up 65% at a 24-year high, coffee is up 60% to a 10-year high, sugar is up 35%, gold and silver are up 50%, and crude oil is banging against $100 /barrel, up 80% from a year ago. Crude oil or “black gold” is not just an industrial commodity, but is utilized as an inflation-hedge and alternative to stocks.

And our governments are saying inflation is 2 - 3 % !!! No wonder the dollar is going to the toilet faster every time I blink.. 1.50 EUR today and all day long setting historic low after historic low on the USD index.. 74.2? now !!

So why is this happening !! From the Mogambo Guru (funny newsletter)..

Nearly Perfect Data

And doubly "yikes" if you contrast this economic gibberish with Mr. Ash quoting Mervyn King, now governor at the Bank of England, as profoundly saying that, "Few empirical regularities in economics are so well documented as the co-movement of money [supply] and inflation."

In fact, Mr. King himself quoted the statistics that, "Over the 30 year horizon 1968-98, the correlation coefficient between the growth rates of both narrow and broad money, on the one hand, and inflation, on the other, was 0.99."

Mr. Ash graciously acknowledges that many of us took a statistics course many years ago, and we didn't really understand it then, and so this "0.99 correlation coefficient" thing is pretty meaningless to us, and it looks like we are wasting our time here if he is going to converse with the math eggheads in the crowd about things we don't understand, and since it is almost lunchtime, then I am outta here!

So he politely explains that, "0.99 is as near perfect as you'll find in any pair of data. An absolute 1.00 only ever exists for the very same thing measured against itself - say, the cost of living mapped onto the cost of living, or gold prices correlated with gold prices, for example."

So we out here in the audience nod our heads to signify that we understand the concept of "virtually guaranteed", but we are soon sorry that we did, as our blood thickens in our veins at the sheer economic horror revealed as he goes on, "But ignoring the flood of money - first created as credit and now stacked up in Treasury bonds across the emerging economies - would mean ignoring the connection between growth in the money supply and inflation in prices", like China registering an 18% plus growth in money, India 22.4% a year growth, Singapore 14%, Britain up by 12.3%, Western Europe 11.5%, Australia16%, Canada 13%, and Saudi Arabia 22%!

He ends with the sorrowful news that, "The U.S. money supply - if the Fed still reported M3 - is now guesstimated to be showing 15% annual expansion."

Then I think back to Mr. King saying that, "Few empirical regularities in economics are so well documented as the co-movement of money and inflation", which turns out to be an almost perfect correlation, and I break out into a sweat as I realize that with money in the USA expanding at 15% a year, we're freaking doomed!

[marc26]

Ao was just commenting on food prices in BKK
and in almost every instance it was around a 150% increase

[LivinLOS]

Without making this sound anti American.. Inflation is by far Americas biggest export..

Deficits both trade and federal, being paid for in created from thin air dollars lowering the USD.. But every other nation in the world then has to compete internationally so also wants to maintain a dollar peg or approx dollar exchange rate, so they flood thier economy with money too.. More money supply all round thanks to those deficits (that dont matter !!! ha ha ha)..

Its this very inflation that people saw in asset classes such as real estate and now commodities etc..

[marc26]

Originally Posted by LivinLOS

Without making this sound anti American.. Inflation is by far Americas biggest export..

Deficits both trade and federal, being paid for in created from thin air dollars lowering the USD.. But every other nation in the world then has to compete internationally so also wants to maintain a dollar peg or approx dollar exchange rate, so they flood thier economy with money too.. More money supply all round thanks to those deficits (that dont matter !!! ha ha ha)..

Its this very inflation that people saw in asset classes such as real estate and now commodities etc..

of course
any sort of inflation in the states is inflatioon world wide, in a sense

[Nicke]

Carrefour is good for a lot of things, but fruits and other fresh food is currently best to buy in Kathu. Ead gave me a lot of examples between these two and Kathu is a lot cheaper on many things.

If you have a family (like I have) the price difference is a big difference money wise. Shopping at Kathu is the way to go, ofcourse she will still buy some things in Patong.

Originally Posted by ATMwalking

I've been informed of the same. There has been a lot of inflation in the basic staples (especially cooking oil).

But you really need to load up to make crossing the hill worth while I'd think. I thought Carefour would help on this...no?

[nelsonone]

how about Banzaan markets these days.....I imagine the rush of falang around there has ushed up prices there too

In Aus/NZ prices have gone through the roof with a combination of drought and other inflationary issues like the petrol price, interest rates etc

[LivinLOS]

To be honest the Carrefore is great but I still shop for meats fish and veg in baanzaan.. That also then adds in spices and local fruit (tho I cant help myself with peaches and nectarines in carrefore !! So nice after years without them)..

I have tried other Thai wet markets, not been to any in Phuket town tho, but baanzaan is clean and hygienic enough for me, wheres some of the more village affairs are rough like the old patong market used to be, The fish selection and quality in baanzaan is great. One thing I miss being out of Patong is going every other day or so for BBQ bits or fresh market bites.

I dont know the price diff between carrefore and baanzaan as I sort of use them for different thing and dont look, but feel baanzaan is much fresher.

[Nicke]

It was banzaan I was refering to, as being expensive these days.

Originally Posted by nelsonone

how about Banzaan markets these days.....I imagine the rush of falang around there has ushed up prices there too

In Aus/NZ prices have gone through the roof with a combination of drought and other inflationary issues like the petrol price, interest rates etc

[landofsmiles]

Mae Ubol is cheaper than Baan Zaan but the selection and quality maybe not quite as good. I can still get a big bagful of veg there for 60baht.

[nelsonone]

Originally Posted by Nicke

It was banzaan I was refering to, as being expensive these days.

ah....gotcha Nicke....I do love the place though!

[ChoakMyDee]

Does this mean that sponsors should be increasing their monthly money wire to their Thai lady? Let me know and I will start a new thread informing all BMs that the new accepted sponsor rate went from 10,000 Baht to 25,000 Baht a month in correlation to 150% inflation rate.

Also, what about RTGs? Already very expensive...

[marc26]

Originally Posted by LivinLOS

Without making this sound anti American.. Inflation is by far Americas biggest export..

Deficits both trade and federal, being paid for in created from thin air dollars lowering the USD.. But every other nation in the world then has to compete internationally so also wants to maintain a dollar peg or approx dollar exchange rate, so they flood thier economy with money too.. More money supply all round thanks to those deficits (that dont matter !!! ha ha ha)..

Its this very inflation that people saw in asset classes such as real estate and now commodities etc..

absolutely hilarious
without giving her an economics class i tried to explain to Ao why the situation is what it is
her reply-" you work stock market, u can not make it stop??" 55555

[Simbo]

Big thing affecting prices across the board is the increase in fuel prices. As almost everything is trucked on to the island this cost obviously has to be passed on to the consumer. In Sep 2004 I was paying around B18 per litre for diesel, now around B30 depending on where I fill up. If we notice it, think what effect that has on a thai earning 2-300 baht a day ( talking about the individuals, not truckers).

[landofsmiles]

[quote=ChoakMyDee;446122] 150% inflation rate.[quote]

That's a tiny increase compared to Zimbabwes' 100,000% and where a loaf of bread is costing $1million Zimbabwe.

[Soupdragon]

Originally Posted by Simbo

In Sep 2004 I was paying around B18 per litre for diesel, now around B30 depending on where I fill up. If we notice it, think what effect that has on a thai earning 2-300 baht a day ( talking about the individuals, not truckers).

Having a pretty bad effect on fisherman. They have to buy the fuel but the price of fish isn't keeping pace. Will encourage bad fishing practices which is no good for anyone.

Originally Posted by landofsmiles;446168[QUOTE

That's a tiny increase compared to Zimbabwes' 100,000% and where a loaf of bread is costing $1million Zimbabwe.

Thats 1072.75 Thai Baht. Think about that next time your tucking into your ST, you could be having a Zimbabwe sandwich (not the sort you're used to) instead.

[ChoakMyDee]

Originally Posted by Simbo

Big thing affecting prices across the board is the increase in fuel prices. As almost everything is trucked on to the island this cost obviously has to be passed on to the consumer. In Sep 2004 I was paying around B18 per litre for diesel, now around B30 depending on where I fill up. If we notice it, think what effect that has on a thai earning 2-300 baht a day ( talking about the individuals, not truckers).

Not to mention the fact that many Thais are up to their ass in debt as a Thai business man in Phuket town informed me one day. He was telling me that most of the cars you see the locals driving are on loan and they are paying huge interest rates. Getting things on credit is a fairly new thing for the Thais and they are not responsible with their money generally. They think..."Wow I can get a car now and I pay no money?"

[midnightsun1]

Besides food.... You can add in rentals, real estate, beers, spirits, and lady drinks prices, and pretty much anything else for sale or rent in Patong. Patong is so far out of whack compared to the rest of Thailand. Its called GREED.

Can agree with Nicke there. I prefer to go to Kathu or Phuket Town. Even with the cost of transportation and time. A completely different atmosphere.

[LivinLOS]

I dont know if its greed.. more like supply and demand.. Just see the 'every man and his dog' thread..

Tho if there is a global recession, collapse in real estate values, and a drop off in tourism, this economy is so geared around ever increasing returns that simply being stagnant for a year or two would lead to many biz's having a REALLY hard time.

[ATMwalking]

Official inflation rate for February was 5.2% year on year. But a drink at the bar seems about 20% more expensive this year.