Raw material prices have been following a significantly upward trend worldwide this year, and the impact on Romania is getting stronger and stronger, even if not taking into account the VAT hike.
The Statistics Institute yesterday announced a 0.55% monthly inflation in October, which explains last week's nervousness of the NBR officials when it came to talking about prices.
The high growth of the resource-intensive emerging economies, as well as the hundreds of billions of dollars worth of injections by Federal Reserve are some of the causes of a new boom of prices of raw materials - be they foods or non-foods, after the 2008 boom, which was offset by the major financial crisis.
Wheat was the first to go up in price in 2010. Then the other types of grain become more expensive, followed by basic metals and by meat products.
The price increase does not seem to stop here, though, international analysts forecast. Next year the trend of the raw material prices could become the main reason for concern of the authorities, given that the wheat price may double, say prestigious foreign business publications.
Wall Street Journal and Financial Times are now talking about new record highs in terms of raw material prices in the near future.
Cotton is the last of a number of raw materials whose prices reached all time highs. Gold, silver and grain saw their prices rise fast on commodities exchanges throughout the world, yet none of them can equal cotton's performance - a 100% increase in 2010 to 3.36 dollars per kilo.
Raw material prices have been following a significantly upward trend worldwide this year, and the impact on Romania is getting stronger and stronger, even if not taking into account the VAT hike.
The Statistics Institute yesterday announced a 0.55% monthly inflation in October, which explains last week's nervousness
