Food price increases weighing heavily on the poor
PARIS: Spare a thought for the world's poor and hungry when you tune into the next episode of U.S. recession watch this week. Sky-high food prices are prompting one country after another to curtail exports in favor of domestic supply, a trend India joined Friday hard on the heels of Vietnam with a sharp increase in export prices for rice, a national staple in both countries. Cameroon, smarting from food price riots that rights groups say left as many as 100 people dead last month, announced cutbacks in official travel abroad to help finance wage rises for state employees.