Inflation, 5% Bull^&* !! - Page 2

How do you get apps

We use Mercadona,Aldi and Lidl and if I had to choose only one it would be Mercadona.Why?,well prices are always competitive,quality is always good and I feel I’m putting money direct into the Spanish economy.For now will continue to use all 3 and always bu as much as I can on discount stickers and use the freezer.I always did this in the UK,who wouldn’t want to save 30%?

Using your smartphone - go to the app store or playstore, search Mercadona, Lidl etc, then download them.

Or just look up the shop online then sign up for online shopping.

Then you can see products and prices.

Well put it this way, I am well on my way to becoming a vegetarian lol. Meat prices way up and diesel today I noticed 10p per litre...not a one off...that was 2 garages, asda and jet. Also ordered 500 litres of heating oil almost £90 more than last month at £392....most I have ever paid.

We use all the various supermarkets. We are fortunate in having Carrefour, Lidl, Mercadona,  Economy, and Hiperber, all with about a 5 minute walk. Each has its advantages re price and or quality. We also have 2 freezers (A++). Depending which shop you use, you can save as much as 6 E on washing powder, 50% on dishwasher tabs, 30% on beer and Aperol and as much as 40% on Marmite for example. Mercadona Fish quality has gone the tubes as far as we are concerned, they mix and match old with new and 2 weeks ago Pargo on sale was 9 days from it's caught date, very surprised. It was not our local Mercadona!

I will not go further as I am selfish and don't want the sources to dry up!!

Incidentally, Carrefour (Torrevieja) makes it almost impossible to see let alone read the details of the fish on sale! If you try and get near enough you are rebuked and even told downright lies about the relevant dates on the crate labels.

Hi Mrmike,

I´ve just been reading this article in "The Local", which gives some background to the issues:

Supply chain problems, energy price rises and raw material costs are pushing up the price of several essential products in Spain. Here's how the war in Ukraine could impact your food shop and other daily expenses.

Buying basic food products like bread, milk or pasta could soon hit people’s wallets harder, as the Ukraine crisis causes disruption in supply chains and rising energy bills. It comes after inflation in Spain accelerated in February to its fastest pace in nearly 33 years. This acceleration has already driven up the price of food, beverages, fuel and energy. Here are the products that are likely to see a price rise in the coming weeks:

1. Wheat products like bread and pasta

Russia and Ukraine are two of the world’s top wheat exporters. When Russian forces invaded Ukraine, global chain supply was put at risk and the price of wheat jumped to its highest levels since 2012. As much as 65 percent of the wheat imported to Spain comes from Ukraine. The price of wheat had already gone up 25 per cent in the past few months, and in the past two weeks, it has gone up by 10 percent, according to Antena 3 news.

2. Petrol

Russia is one of the biggest energy producers in the world, and oil prices have surged since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, despite measures aimed at calming markets. Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – hit $113 a barrel this week, bringing it to the highest level since June 2014. Petrol and diesel prices had already skyrocketed in recent weeks. In early February, petrol reached a record high €1,53/litre. It has since continued to rise to €1,60/litre, while diesel is currently at €1,49/litre.

3. Electricity

The EU is the largest importer of natural gas in the world, with the largest share coming from Russia (41 percent). The price of gas has already gone up by 60 per cent in the past few days. In Spain, it reached historic highs at €195/MWh. The price of electricity has gone up 16.8 per cent due to the crisis in Ukraine. The Spanish government has said that prices are expected to continue to rise, but there is no current threat to gas supplies, as Russia is not one of the country’s main suppliers.

4. Sunflower oil

Ukraine provides Spain with a lot of sunflower oil. Around 63 percent of the sunflower imported to Spain comes from Ukraine. This may not seem like the most essential product, but a lot of other food products contain sunflower oil.

5. Housing

The fuel price increase will have an overall impact on the price of all products and commodities, resulting in construction costs for new buildings also rising. Every year, landlords are allowed to increase the price of rent according to inflation, which means renting could also become more expensive.

6. Meat, milk, eggs and other animal products

Russia is the world’s main producer of grain crops, above the US and Canada. Grain is used to make animal feed, so an increase in prices could indirectly affect animal products like ham, eggs and milk. “In ten days, the price of raw materials, like wheat and corn, has gone up between 30 and 60 percent,” Jorge De Saja, director of Cesfac (Spain’s Confederation of Animal Food Producers) told Business Insider. Practically half of all maize imports to Spain are, or were, from Ukraine.

Credit: "The Local", 4 March 2022

Kind regards,

Kim

Bang on the target. This will cripple the economies of the west....and I am not intending to be dramatic. All those points mentioned  oil, food....the dominio effects are going to hurt...usually and as usual those who have the least. We're looking at the beginning of a sea change. Almost like it was designed, aka you will own nothing and be happy  but I'm sure the WEF had zilch to do with anything .

They are not "using any threat". I don't know if you've noticed but over the past few months, the price of oil and gas has shot through the roof - and not solely due to the Ukraine crisis. Foodstuffs and other things, not produced in a home country, need to shipped in from abroad. Ships use oil or diesel. Trucks use diesel. Shops are heated during winter. Etc, etc.

These costs are passed down to the end user. Us. Basic economics. Not a conspiracy of supermarkets ripping people off.

That may be but many UK Supermarkets increased their prices as soon as Putin sent his troops into Ukraine!....i.e. products currently on the shelves shot up in price!!!!

Do you know how gas and oil is bought on the international market? The world commodity markets guess what a barrel of oil might be worth in, say, a year's time, and therefore "predict" how much it can be sold for. But in can all go horribly wrong. 

For example, suppose that Commodity X (oil), which might currently sell at $30 per barrel, will be available for $35 in a contract dated to come due next January. A speculator (investor) who thinks that the price will, in actuality, shoot past that, say to $45, by said time can therefore purchase the $35 contract. If their prediction is correct, they can then buy X at $35 and immediately sell it for a $10 profit. But should X end up falling short of $35, their contract is worthless. This is one reason why oil companies' share values fluctuate so much.

Conversely, if you are committed to buy a million barrels of oil at $30 each, but when the time to pay arrives, the actual cost is $90 per barrel, you are screwed. You are committed to buy but now you must pay THREE TIMES more than you anticipated. Your only option? Increase the price to the end user. 

China and India have been buying huge quantities of oil and gas for months. So there's another big influencer on prices - supply and demand! 

This applies to all commodities, e.g: tea, coffee, sugar, metals, and many foodstuffs such as grain and corn.  

However, the Russia/Ukraine crisis has also had a huge impact on gas costs, due in part to Europe being so utterly dependent on it!