The Oil Drum: Canada

Hi Stoneleigh and musashi,

musashi, your mention of macro economical issues suggested to me the idea of micro economical issues. Just today a micro event occurred today in my front yard. We had just taken out out old stove after putting in a replacement and a man in a truck stopped and came up and asked that if I didn't want it could he take it away. Okay. A few months earlier another came up and asked about an old car we had driven to death. Okay. We have been here for 8 years and never had any requests like these before. It leads me to think that maybe there are micro indicators of what is happening in the overall economy so just now I did a quick google and came up with the following two articles. I wonder if an interesting indicator how the winds are blowing could be found in odd or small news, like in these articles?

Price of flour doubled, that of bread soared six-fold in Tajikistan

12.09.2007 11:34 msk

Regnum news agency

Price of flour in Tajikistan is soaring sky-high. A sackful goes at 120 somoni (about $35) nowadays against 60-70 somoni a month ago. Vendors report no new deliveries and claim that the flour from the reserves is on sale nowadays.

Bread and cake prices went up too, as a result. A small cake that went for 20 dirams (almost $0.07) goes for 1.5 somoni (almost $0.44) now.

Economic Development and Commerce Ministry claims that a special commission was set up to study the cause of the price-rise. Sources in the ministry point out in the meantime that this particular trend is noticeable worldwide and that the process therefore could not help affecting Tajikistan. This country imports more than 60% of flour consumption. Experts do not expect prices to go down in the foreseeable future and warn that a sackful may soon cost 170 somoni or nearly $70.

http://enews.ferghana.ru/article.php?id=2114

Landlord charged with theft of metal
Jack Keating, The Province
Published: Wednesday, October 17, 2007

A Langley man was charged yesterday with the theft of fabricated metal products worth about $180,000 that were destined for the Vancouver Convention Centre expansion project.

http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=9b67bcf1-8eb2-427d-8fb2-145f05a000dc&k=19624

It has been my opinion that collapse of the economy will occur without any clear consensus that we are past peak oil. I check this channel first every day as I think the economical is going to be the the righteous one, as everything from PO politics and global warming end up affecting the financial, the beast that bakes the daily bread.

Stoneleigh, after being quite involved with the dot com meltdown I can readily see how fast things can happen particularly if one isn't watching for them so it is important to have access to all the things you put on your site.