Pricing is out of control

[Sherman Bird]

In 2019 I bought a tub of margarine for $3. Today it is $13. It's that simple.
Gas was $1.75. Now $3.35. No mystery.
Who do you blame? No Mystery either.

Why does anyone need blaming? Vote with your wallet. Let the margarine go rank on the shelf! Oh! Wait! The refined oils which are the hydrogenated chemicals which make margarine put it in the "tween key" are in the category of indestructible! LOL!

 

[gwilburn]

Manufacturers colluded?

No, DC colluded and printed trillions in worthless paper. It was the largest hidden tax in history. And everyone sat back and congratulated themselves on receiving their little assistance checks.

This is EXACTLY what happened... you can't print trillions of dollars and dump it into the economy without consequences. COVID had nothing to do with it. COVID was the excuse to do it.
If you're having trouble digesting what a "trillion" is, think of it this way:

A million seconds is 12 days.
A billion seconds is 32 years.
A trillion seconds is 32,000 years!

 

[Jane S]

If you live in the US, this is a non-issue. The type of rice that is now under export ban is not a type we import much of here. You can verify it yourself by looking at import/export reports. Almost all of what we import is Basmati and aromatics, which is specifically excluded from the ban. If you're in Africa, the Mid East, or Asian subcontinent you're in for a bad time, though. Don't care enough to research Canada's imports/exports.

Next question: could US growers now export more to make up the difference, creating more home shortages? I don't think so, given the cost of shipping and relatively lack of unspoken for cargo capacity to do so.

Short term you'll likely see a panic buy as lemmings react to the media's latest Chicken Little warnings and gut the local supermarket, but once they have the 50lb bag they'll never eat, it'll be back to norms.

Man!
How can one post have so much bad info in it.

1. Rice is a world market. "The United States is currently the largest rice importing country in the Western Hemisphere, currently importing around 1.3 million tons." So, when the price of rice goes up, the cost increases for the USA.

2. The USA exports 2075 metric tons each year and migh export more if other countries pay more, so higher prices?

3. India is haulting rice exports because they are expecting a shortfall in need so they may import it leading to higher prices.

4. "Almost all of what we import is Basmati and aromatics, " Other countries/people could switch to them; higher prices.
The more you know ...

 

[Atcer2018]

Right. So what do you think is different about "the inability to levee taxes" vs " who had the authority to levee taxes" and the more detailed account vs the materially same but abbreviated "for the common defense of the colony vs "small parties of skulking murderers" on the frontier (aka, unfriendly Indians)" ?

Because it wasn’t about the actual ability to levee taxes. It was Franklins frustration with Britain’s treatment of the colonies, specifically Pennsylvania and being subject to the financial shenanigans of the Penn family after William’s death. They could levee taxes all day long but when the governor is owned by the ruling class they were hamstrung.

You felt the need to interject your opinion that the quote whether misquoted or not is twisted for reasons that we can not speak of here. I can find the relevance in Sherman’s use of the quote.

 

[Docwagon1776]

Man!
How can one post have so much bad info in it.

1. Rice is a world market. "The United States is currently the largest rice importing country in the Western Hemisphere, currently importing around 1.3 million tons." So, when the price of rice goes up, the cost increases for the USA.

2. The USA exports 2075 metric tons each year and migh export more if other countries pay more, so higher prices?

3. India is haulting rice exports because they are expecting a shortfall in need so they may import it leading to higher prices.

4. "Almost all of what we import is Basmati and aromatics, " Other countries/people could switch to them; higher prices.
The more you know ...

Maybe you should jump in and buy futures, if you're right you'll make bank. Rice is a global commodity, but it doesn't teleport around the globe.

Quick question, is the US commodities market acting like there is an impending shortage? How do prices look today vs, oh, say the beginning of the month?

 

[Docwagon1776]

Because it wasn’t about the actual ability to levee taxes. It was Franklins frustration with Britain’s treatment of the colonies, specifically Pennsylvania and being subject to the financial shenanigans of the Penn family after William’s death. They could levee taxes all day long but when the governor is owned by the ruling class they were hamstrung.

You felt the need to interject your opinion that the quote whether misquoted or not is twisted for reasons that we can not speak of here. I can find the relevance in Sherman’s use of the quote.

I'm not sure what semantic game you're playing to pretend "the inability to levee taxes" vs " who had the authority to levee taxes" are not materially the same statements, but as you say we're hampered by how much of the subject to broach. I'll leave you to it.

 

[Atcer2018]

The quote is in a broader debate that is generally stripped out to twist it to make some libertarian point.

It is a Libertarian point. It doesn’t need to be twisted for it to fit the context of the history behind it. I tried to shed some light on said history. As I stated in my last post Franklin’s frustration was not over the ability to levee taxes as the Pennsylvania General Assembly had that power. It was the interference from the appointed Governor and the Penn family. I’m not playing a semantic game. It’s a complicated history that we older Pennsylvanians learned back in school. Like you I’m done with this as it borders on political discussion.

 

[Goose55]

Hi All,

I was reading a different thread on here (sorry, I forget which) and they were talking about RAM prices increasing by a lot. I guess I hadn't really paid attention so I went and looked at my 2021 1500 BigHorn's MSRP listing on my window sticker and then compared a 2023 RAM 1500 at a local dealer. I almost choked when I realized that the price jumped by 25%! My base MSRP was just under $40k ($39k + change). The new one was listed at just under $50k. MSRP. Before options. Wow. Just wow.

I haven't looked but is this pretty much the standard now across most trucks? Did all the manufacturers just decide to collude one day and raise everything 25%?

Yeah. I was lucky. Back in January of 2020 I happened to be driving past the Ram Dealership and they had over 1/2 dozen Cummins duallies parked on the corner of the lot, like eye candy. I turned in there and found out the 2019s were marked $10,000 off the sticker price. I went back on the last day of the month with a large cashiers check and got the one I wanted for only $64K. My down was only $15K but they gave me a 36 month, 0% interest loan, so it was as good as a cash deal. I guess these trucks are now way over $90K. So, I guess I'll be keeping mine for some time, which is fine as I only have 19K miles on it. Last January I purchased a Mopar Factory extended warranty for it so I'm good.

Buy low, sell high.

 

[RamGuy110]

If I'd stayed with the 1/2 ton, I'd have bought the F-150 Tremor over the Ram 1500 Rebel. Ram used to be the value brand, excellent features for the money. Now I think they are last place in that regard. Still nice trucks, but too much $$$ comparatively. I couldn't find *any* Chevy or GMC dealers willing to play ball on a 1500 ZR2.

Nobody else makes an actual competitor to the Power Wagon, though.

Agreed 100%!

 

[Greek]

My ram will be my last truck for that reason. And no I will not buy those micro trucks

 

[Jane S]

Maybe you should jump in and buy futures, if you're right you'll make bank. Rice is a global commodity, but it doesn't teleport around the globe.

Quick question, is the US commodities market acting like there is an impending shortage? How do prices look today vs, oh, say the beginning of the month?

"teleport" What does that mean?

​

 

[Jane S]

It is a Libertarian point. It doesn’t need to be twisted for it to fit the context of the history behind it. I tried to shed some light on said history. As I stated in my last post Franklin’s frustration was not over the ability to levee taxes as the Pennsylvania General Assembly had that power. It was the interference from the appointed Governor and the Penn family. I’m not playing a semantic game. It’s a complicated history that we older Pennsylvanians learned back in school. Like you I’m done with this as it borders on political discussion.

"It is a Libertarian point."

Libertarians don't have a point. If they did; they wouldn't be libertarians.

 

[Docwagon1776]

"teleport" What does that mean?

​

It means goods don't just magically appear from one area to another. A global market requires global logistics. Prices don't automatically equalize globally because products don't teleport. For a commodity like rice, let's consider:

1) Existing contracts
2) Availability and cost of shipping from grower/processer to port facilities
3) Availability and cost of port facilities and loading
4) Availability and cost of shipping
5) Availability and cost of receiving
6) Ability of major customers to product swap (you can swap the type of rice you serve at dinner, a major brewer needs the type of rice they need)
7) Ability of new customers to pay (African nations aren't the US, they don't have practically unlimited resources)

Now, I don't know the status of all those things. I'll assume you don't either. I don't care enough to learn about them. I'll assume you don't either. So, I look to see what people who make good money to know those things are doing. You can do that easily by looking at commodity markets. Rice is *down* $1.74 from a month ago. Does that sound like professional traders, growers, and purchasers belive there will be a shortage?

The 52 week high for rice is $19.92. Today it's $15.92 Does that sound like prices are blasting through the roof due to this shortage?


So if you believe I'm giving out bad information and you understand it better, you've got the opportunity to rip the faces off professional traders. Buy your futures now and cash in.

Want to revisit this in 6 months when the media is telling Chicken Little a different sky is falling and everybody's forgotten they were supposed to be moving out their horde of toilet paper for rice this week?

 

[Jane S]

It means goods don't just magically appear from one area to another. A global market requires global logistics. Prices don't automatically equalize globally because products don't teleport. For a commodity like rice, let's consider:

1) Existing contracts
2) Availability and cost of shipping from grower/processer to port facilities
3) Availability and cost of port facilities and loading
4) Availability and cost of shipping
5) Availability and cost of receiving
6) Ability of major customers to product swap (you can swap the type of rice you serve at dinner, a major brewer needs the type of rice they need)
7) Ability of new customers to pay (African nations aren't the US, they don't have practically unlimited resources)

Now, I don't know the status of all those things. I'll assume you don't either. I don't care enough to learn about them. I'll assume you don't either. So, I look to see what people who make good money to know those things are doing. You can do that easily by looking at commodity markets. Rice is *down* $1.74 from a month ago. Does that sound like professional traders, growers, and purchasers belive there will be a shortage?

The 52 week high for rice is $19.92. Today it's $15.92 Does that sound like prices are blasting through the roof due to this shortage?


So if you believe I'm giving out bad information and you understand it better, you've got the opportunity to rip the faces off professional traders. Buy your futures now and cash in.

Want to revisit this in 6 months when the media is telling Chicken Little a different sky is falling and everybody's forgotten they were supposed to be moving out their horde of toilet paper for rice this week?

I asked ChatGPT help for a response:
"I’m sorry but I’m not sure what you want me to reply to. Can you please clarify?"

 

[Docwagon1776]

My fault, I thought you intended a conversation instead of a trolling.

 

[Atcer2018]

The quote is in a broader debate that is generally stripped out to twist it to make some libertarian point

It is a Libertarian point.

"It is a Libertarian point."

Libertarians don't have a point. If they did; they wouldn't be libertarians.

Maybe if you could keep up you could ask ChatGPT how to be funny.

 

[FabricGATOR]

The ***** traders figured out how to screw almost everyone and steal everyone's retirement savings through dilution. [The missing word starts with an S, ends with an E, and has the additional letters LAV in between] If you earn money, buy stuff, if you play into the whole wage labor and wealth illusion, you is one...

It started with crypto... create something of perceived value out of thin air (trade anything of value and give the chump a cloud of electrons in the form of a code)

Then COVID... print and 'give away' some monopoly money (make the fools think they area getting something for nothing)

Ukraine... print some more monopoly money and tighten the belt.... the symp pathetic chumps will chalk it up to poor zelinsky but we 'must stop the evil Ruskies' People, please... Vladimir is all part of this 'fleecing of the humans'... and don't you worry about the the poor oligarch's, they will come out of this squeaky and platinum shiny. all part of the illusion

Then and now Student Loan.... print more

NEXT China and Taiwan ?

 

[T Ram 20]

Prices will have to drop auto manufacturers will start to suffer cars not selling in volume anymore or will have to extend payment plans way past the 84 months probably to a 8 to 10 year plans just to buy a new vehicle but also at the same time intrest rate will hurt people that has excellent credit for longer payouts wich isn't right. Something will have to give even used car prices it's not like everyone gets a cost of living pay increase every year, people will drive there vehicles longer meaning new vehicle sale will slow down, but with that being said why make the people with excellent credit pay the price with extend payment plans just to be able to make a fair monthly payments, but I do believe auto loan will have to be offered past the 84 months to 3 or 4 additional years

 

[Rayzaa]

So that means food is a shortage again? My grocery bill is up 125+ dollars a week lol.

There is no shortage. India just wants more for their rice and taking advantage that they can ask more.
Thankfully I don't need rice and can easily get ny without it but some cultures eat it everyday.

There was no shortage of eggs. They just raised the price but when people stopped paying $8 and they went bad, they lowered the price.

If you don't NEED a new vehicle, dont get one. My 2007 runs fine with 125k miles. No way I'm paying the prices today.
I don't get the panic. Never understood why everyone stocked up on toilet paper lol. I didn't crap more than usual during the pandemic.

 

[tbird71]

Hell look at FORDS....they're 10K more than RAMS!