Anatomy of a crisis: The causes and consequences of surging food prices

Although the potential causes and consequences of recent increases in international food prices have attracted widespread attention, many existing appraisals are superficial and/or piecemeal. This paper attempts to provide a more comprehensive review of these issues based on the best and most recent...

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Main Authors: Headey, Derek D., Fan, Shenggen
Format: Artículo preliminar
Language:Inglés
Published: International Food Policy Research Institute 2008
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/161394
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author Headey, Derek D.
Fan, Shenggen
author_browse Fan, Shenggen
Headey, Derek D.
author_facet Headey, Derek D.
Fan, Shenggen
author_sort Headey, Derek D.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Although the potential causes and consequences of recent increases in international food prices have attracted widespread attention, many existing appraisals are superficial and/or piecemeal. This paper attempts to provide a more comprehensive review of these issues based on the best and most recent research, and includes fresh theoretical and empirical analysis. We first analyze the causes of the current crisis by considering how well standard explanations hold up against relevant economic theory and important stylized facts. Some explanations, especially rising oil prices, the depreciation of the US dollar, biofuel demand, and some commodity-specific explanations, hold up much better than some others. We then provide an appraisal of the likely macro- and microeconomic impacts of the crisis in developing countries. We observe a large gap in the effects of macro and micro factors, and note that when these factors are used to identify the most vulnerable countries, the results often point in different directions. We conclude with a brief discussion of what ought to be learned from this crisis.
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spelling CGSpace1613942025-11-06T07:14:55Z Anatomy of a crisis: The causes and consequences of surging food prices Headey, Derek D. Fan, Shenggen food prices oil and gas production prices biofuels poverty impact macroeconomic analysis Although the potential causes and consequences of recent increases in international food prices have attracted widespread attention, many existing appraisals are superficial and/or piecemeal. This paper attempts to provide a more comprehensive review of these issues based on the best and most recent research, and includes fresh theoretical and empirical analysis. We first analyze the causes of the current crisis by considering how well standard explanations hold up against relevant economic theory and important stylized facts. Some explanations, especially rising oil prices, the depreciation of the US dollar, biofuel demand, and some commodity-specific explanations, hold up much better than some others. We then provide an appraisal of the likely macro- and microeconomic impacts of the crisis in developing countries. We observe a large gap in the effects of macro and micro factors, and note that when these factors are used to identify the most vulnerable countries, the results often point in different directions. We conclude with a brief discussion of what ought to be learned from this crisis. 2008 2024-11-21T09:55:24Z 2024-11-21T09:55:24Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/161394 en https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896291782RM165 https://hdl.handle.net/10568/152604 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Headey, Derek D.; Fan, Shenggen. 2008. Anatomy of a crisis: The causes and consequences of surging food prices. IFPRI Discussion Paper 831. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/161394
spellingShingle food prices
oil and gas production
prices
biofuels
poverty
impact
macroeconomic analysis
Headey, Derek D.
Fan, Shenggen
Anatomy of a crisis: The causes and consequences of surging food prices
title Anatomy of a crisis: The causes and consequences of surging food prices
title_full Anatomy of a crisis: The causes and consequences of surging food prices
title_fullStr Anatomy of a crisis: The causes and consequences of surging food prices
title_full_unstemmed Anatomy of a crisis: The causes and consequences of surging food prices
title_short Anatomy of a crisis: The causes and consequences of surging food prices
title_sort anatomy of a crisis the causes and consequences of surging food prices
topic food prices
oil and gas production
prices
biofuels
poverty
impact
macroeconomic analysis
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/161394
work_keys_str_mv AT headeyderekd anatomyofacrisisthecausesandconsequencesofsurgingfoodprices
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