War in Ukraine will cripple global food markets
The share of incomes spent on staples is about to jump everywhere
IN OCTOBER 1914 the Ottoman Empire, having just joined the first world war, blockaded the Dardanelles Strait, the only route for Russian wheat to travel to Britain and France. The world had entered the conflict with wheat stocks 12% above the five-year average, but losing over 20% of the global traded supply of the crop overnight set food markets ablaze. Having risen by a fifth since June 1914, wheat prices in Chicago, the international benchmark, leapt by another 45% over the following quarter.
This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “Grainstorm”
Finance & economics March 12th 2022
- Can the world cope without Russia’s huge commodity stash?
- War in Ukraine will cripple global food markets
- Russia looks to Chinese financial plumbing to keep money flowing
- Western credit markets are holding up remarkably well
- Iran’s flourishing stockmarket reflects its resilient economy
- Our crony-capitalism index offers a window into Russia’s billionaire wealth
- How oil shocks have become less shocking
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