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Strategies & Market Trends : The Epic American Credit and Bond Bubble Laboratory -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ild who wrote (11778)	4/12/2004 11:50:57 AM
From: ild	Respond to of 110194

Price Increases in Asia Fan Inflation Fears in U.S. As Production Costs Rise, Imports Could Get Pricier; Fed Not Eager to Boost Rates By PATRICK BARTA Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL April 13, 2004; Page A1 Sharp increases in global commodity prices are beginning to push consumer prices higher in Asia, boosting the odds that inflation will be exported to the U.S. and elsewhere in the months ahead. Consumer prices had been holding fairly steady, or even declining, in much of Asia in recent years, as the region's economies worked off excess capacity amid the global downturn. But as Asia heats up again, price pressures are building, in large part because of China's ravenous appetite for raw materials. Oil prices have shot up and are hovering around $35 a barrel, while the prices of other raw materials, including scrap steel and copper, are double or more what they were just 18 months ago. As a result, consumer price inflation, while still extremely low in Asia by historical standards, has accelerated in recent months. The most significant turnaround has occurred in China. That country's inflation rate, though easing slightly in February, has jumped in recent months, including a 3.2% surge in January, compared with the year before. That comes after prices were nearly flat or declining through much of 2002 and 2003. more at the link online.wsj.com