Are Hedge Funds and Financial Speculation Behind the Food and Oil Crisis? [View All]

[Dover]

Some articles about this:

U.N. says markets are to blame for world food crisis

...This is not a conspiracy theory," he said.

Across the globe foods from bread to milk have become more expensive and in some countries helped fuel inflation. High prices for rice, beans and other food staples provoked food riots in Haiti this week.

"The lack of confidence in the (U.S.) dollar has led investment funds to look for higher returns in commodities ... first metals and then foods," Graziano told a news conference in the capital.

Investors have speculated in commodities including wheat, corn and rice because stocks in recent years have been drawn down by rising demand in emerging markets and supply shortages due to adverse climate in key producer nations, Graziano said.

"Speculative attacks become possible when you have low reserves," Graziano said.

Stocks of some food crops have fallen to their lowest levels in three decades, according to Brazilian farm experts.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080410/wl_nm/brazil_un_food_dc

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Hedge Funds and Commodities:
http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/20/cnbc-video-faber-on-hedge-funds-and-commodities/

Are Hedge Funds Contributing to World Hunger?
http://thepanelist.com/Opinions/Opinions/_20080415929/

Financial Speculators Reap Profits From Global Hunger
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2008/apr2008/hedg-a24.shtml

Hedge Funds Driving Up The Price of Gasoline and Other Commodities:
http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/banking/2008/04/hedge-funds-dri.html

Thanks to Tadd Tobkin for this controversial article which raises the argument that even Calpers, which most people think of as one of the most socially concerned institutional investors, must assume some blame for the fact that food prices in third world countries have risen to the point that people are starving -- a result of institutional investors "pushing a wall of money into the $200bn commodity index funds."

Fed Calls For Transparency of Hedge Funds
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/04/15/business/main4016629.shtml

And this from 2004:
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_35/b3897042_mz011.htm