Cheaper Eggs Coming Your Way

Happy Easter! For those that are out celebrating with egg decorations and egg hunts, I have great news for you!

According to WSJ,

The average retail price of eggs was $1.73 a dozen in March, down 5% from a year ago, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Meanwhile, the wholesale price of $1.28 a dozen in the week leading into Easter is down 7 cents from a year ago and 10 cents from two years ago.

Right now, egg demands around Easter have been less than previous years. And this does not translate well for the egg producers. Maro Ibarburu of Iowa State University's Egg Industry Center said, "If they are not making money now, I don't see how they are going to make money for the next three or four months."

So bring out your paint and brushes, and get crackin'!

(Photo Credit: Crunchy Domestic Goddess)

New Leader Born in Macau's Ho Empire

Casino mogul Stanley Ho has passed his throne to his fourth wife, Angela Leong, after a power struggle within his family. Ms. Leong now controls one of Macau's most lucrative gambling operation, which earned $457 million on revenue of $7.4 billion from its 20 casinos last year.

WSJ reports that Ms. Leong has an ambitious plan to "spend $1.3 billion to build a Macau theme park and resort with six hotels, an indoor beach and an equestrian center. The complex won't have a casino, however, in line with the Macau government's efforts to diversify the economy."

Whether this project will expand the Ho empire further, I give Ms. Leong two thumbs up for creating job opportunities to the people of Macau. Macau is outpacing Las Vegas in terms of revenue, which Macau earned "more than quadruple that of Las Vegas."

China Posts First Quarterly Trade Deficit In 7 Years

Surprise! Just when everyone is criticizing China for "fixing" their Yuan, China throws a curve ball at us by posting a quarterly trade deficit of $1.2 billion for the first time since 2004. From WSJ's China Real Time Reports Blog, this is a significant step signaling the impact of rising commodity prices on China.

Xianfang Ren and Alistair Thorton from IHS Global Insight reports that "the headline data — that China recorded its first quarterly trade deficit since 2004 — may suggest some significant progress on the rebalancing agenda, but it remains far too early to make such a bold call." 

Lu Ting from Bank of America-Merrill Lynch is optimistic that China will most likely post a trade surplus for the year despite month deficits here and there. The slow trade growth is due to weaker terms of trade and rising prices.

By keeping Yuan at a lower exchange rate than other currencies, China continues to export its goods at a reasonable price. Can China keep this charade up? Will China be the next superpower?

IMF: Food Prices Will Remain High

(Source: IMF)

IMF published its March 2011 Finance & Development issue to address a key statement -- Higher food prices may be here to stay.
 
According to Thomas Helbing and Shaun Roache, two staff members of IMF's research department, these price spikes are results of poor weather around the world. As energy prices increases, it will create a knock-on effects on food.

The most crucial explanation is that "consumers in emerging and developing economies are eating more high-protein foods such as meat, dairy products, edible oils, fruits and vegetables, and seafood. These products are more “income elastic” than staple grains.

However, every cloud has a silver lining. IMF staff reports that growth in supplies will take the pressure off costs and slowly take the pressures off on food markets over time. But, "this will take time counted in years rather than months.”