The following articles are compiled by:

Rick Allinson

Rick@WatchmenWatching.com

 

 

 

Wheat prices reach record level
Source: BBC

 

05 February 2008 – Wheat prices have hit record highs on global commodity markets, bringing the threat of rising bread prices.

 

Bad weather in key grain growing areas such as Canada and parts of Europe has limited supplies as demand has risen, sparking fears of a supply shortfall.

 

Surging prices are also expected to have widespread fallout for consumers.

 

While it will mean higher bread prices, it could also trigger an increase in meat and dairy prices as farmers battle to pass on rising feed costs.

 

Global wheat stockpiles will slip to their lowest levels in 26 years as a result, official US figures predicted earlier this month.

 

Output fall

 

The dire forecast came as Canadian officials said the country expected its harvest to be slashed by a fifth as a result of drought.

 

Meanwhile, its rival Australia - the world's third-largest wheat exporter and a key supplier to Asian regions and South America - has also warned harvests may be reduced by warmer-than-expected temperatures experienced in the spring.

 

Crops in the Black Sea area of Europe, however, have been ruined by bad weather, while Chinese production is expected to fall by 10% as a result of both flooding and droughts.

 

And as supplies fall, demand from emerging economies such as India is increasing - factors which helped push prices to record highs of $7.44 a bushel on the benchmark Chicago Board of Trade market in the US on Thursday.

 

In the UK, prices have also soared, with bread-making wheat now fetching about £200 per tonne - double last year's level.

 

While surging prices are beneficial to wheat growers, they do bring further problems.

 

A World Food Programme spokesman said the increases could mean its budget would not stretch far enough to help those affected by natural disasters.

 

Comments: update; Wheat prices continue to rise as stockpiles decline due to drought, bad weather and demand. If the bad weather continues across the globe the Wheat shortage could become critical. Looking at the UK prices from last year, the price of Wheat has doubled and this should be raising some eyebrows. If this kind of trend continues into next year, Wheat (food) prices will become front page news. The bible tells us that during the Tribulation period, (the last 31/2 years) will be a terrible time and that famine will be a global issue. Some people might think that it can’t happen in the Western world but all we have to do is look back at the Great Depression in the 1930’s to get a glimpse of what the future could look like. The beginning of the Great Depression in the United States is associated with the stock market crash on October 29, 1929, known as Black Tuesday. At the same time, severe drought ravaged the agricultural heartland of the USA beginning in the summer of 1930. Are the signs and symptoms of that erra starting to appear? (Read this article) South's ill-timed drought may further crimp U.S. economy

 

Re 6:6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.

Lu 21:11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

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In about turn, U.S. says Iran may be able to make nukes by 2009
Source: Haaretz
 

05 February 2008 –The head of American intelligence said Tuesday that it is unclear whether Tehran has returned to its production of nuclear weapons in the past six months, and warned that Iran "would be technically capable of producing enough highly enriched uranium for a weapon" by the end of next year.

Speaking two months after an American intelligence report cast doubt on Tehran's nuclear ambitions, National Intelligence Director John Michael McConnell made his remarks during an appearance before the Senate Intelligence Committee to present an annual report on threats to the U.S.

National Intelligence Estimate report released in December said that Iran halted its nuclear weapons development program in the fall of 2003.

"We remain concerned about Iran's intentions and assess with moderate-to-high confidence that Tehran at a minimum is keeping open the option to develop nuclear weapons," the report said.

"We assess with high confidence that Iran has the scientific, technical and industrial capacity eventually to produce nuclear weapons," it said, adding that the only realistic way to prevent Iran from producing such weapons was "an Iranian political decision to abandon a nuclear weapons objective."

McConnell expressed skepticism at the ability of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah movement to deliver security for Israel and to overcome Hamas' efforts to stymie the political process.


 

Comments: The NIE report (back in December) was big news because the push for any kind of a strike on Iran was pretty well halted in its tracks. Now, the latest report says Iran may have nukes by 2009 but this report will fall by the wayside because the threat has already been dampened down with the first report. This report is also coming out when the majority of the U.S. population is caught up in the elections so who is really listening to what should be a major news story. The head of American intelligence may have got it right but the only one listening right now is Israel. It is a big about turn but the timing is all wrong with everyone at the polls on Super Tuesday. 

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Keep watching (Matt 24:42)!

 

Until next time,

Shalom!

 

 

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