美国冰激淋价格大幅上涨 通货膨胀即将卷土重来
500) {this.resized=true; this.width=500; this.alt='点击在新窗口中打开';}" alt="" />There's chilling news for the American consumer: ice-cream prices are about to sky-rocket. According to the National Ice Cream Retailers Association (NICRA), the price of an average cone could jump by 30% this summer alone.Record US milk prices are combining with unexpected hikes in the cost of ingredients such as vanilla and cocoa.
Economists worry that this may be only the tip of the icecream-berg: inflation seems to be resurgent.
Rising ice-cream prices are the result of what NICRA calls a "perfect storm" - an unprecedented and unlikely combination of circumstances.
Vanilla prices are high because storms ruined the crop in Madagascar, source of much of the global crop.
And chocolate prices have been boosted by the chaotic security situation in West Africa, where countries such as the Ivory Coast are major cocoa producers.
Most damaging of all to the ice-cream lover, US dairy prices are at a record high, the result of a sharp decrease of production and bans on the import of Canadian cattle.
Butter and cheese producers have been buying up available stocks of milk, sending the futures market to an all-time high this month.
Analysts say high milk prices will have an effect far beyond the ice-cream industry, and could result in more expensive cheese and pizza.
More seriously, the threat is part of a revival in US inflation - a factor that had more or less disappeared during the past few years' economic slowdown.
Overall headline inflation figures remain low: the 0.5% figure recorded in March was among the highest in recent months.
But economists forecast a rebound this summer, as the effects of strong growth filter through to prices.
In particular, prices for steel, oil, property and computer chips have registered strong gains this year.
The worry is that expectations of higher inflation will lead to higher pay claims, which in turn will fuel future prices rises.
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目前，传出一个令美国消费者扫兴的消息：冰激淋的价格要大幅上涨。据美国国家冰激淋零售协会说，普通蛋卷冰激淋的价格仅在今年夏天就会上涨30%。
美国的牛奶价格创下了最高记录，同时香草、可可粉等冰激淋主要成分的成本也始料不及的上涨。
经济学家担心，这种现象也许只是“冰淇淋山”的一角：通货膨胀似乎即将卷土重来。
这次冰激淋的涨价是各种情况共同作用的结果，前所未有、不可思议，美国国家冰激淋零售协会称之为 “完美风暴”。
香草价格的上涨是由于暴风雨摧毁了马达加斯加岛上的香草农作物所造成的，全球许多香草都来源于那里。
此外，由于西非混乱的安全形势导致巧克力的价格不断上扬，象牙海岸（科特迪瓦）等西非国家是可可粉的主要产地。
然而，对于冰淇淋爱好者来说美国奶制品价格上涨损害最大。由于奶制品产量的锐减和禁止进口加拿大奶牛，美国奶制品的价格创造了最高记录。
黄油和奶酪生产商已经尽可能购买现有的牛奶存货，使本月期货行情空前高涨。
分析人士说，居高不下的牛奶价格影响的不仅仅是冰激淋产业，还有可能抬高奶酪和比萨的价格。
更为严重的是，这种危险迹象只是美国通货膨胀死灰复燃的一部分。在过去几年中，美国经济发展速度放缓，通货膨胀差不多已经消失了。
整体标题通货膨胀数字一直保持在一个较低的水平，而三月份0.5%的通货膨胀率是近几个月来最高的。
但是随着高速增长的影响渗透到商品价格，经济学家们预测，通货膨胀今夏会有反弹。
特别是今年的钢铁、石油、房地产和电脑芯片的价格已经有很大的提高。
令人担忧的是，较高的通货膨胀指数将会使人们要求获得更高的工资，反过来也会促进未来价格进一步提高。
chilling: 令人扫兴的
hike: 增加
resurgent: 复活的
unprecedented: 空前的
chaotic: 混乱的
Ivory Coast: 象牙海岸（1986年以后改称为科特迪瓦，Cote d'ivoire）
buy up: 全买；尽可能买进
send: 使……陷入
inflation: 通货膨胀
headline inflation: 标题通货膨胀，指独立于货币当局的统计部门所公布的物价上升指数
rebound: 反弹
filter through: 渗透
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