【英语国际】美国通胀风潮蔓延 食品价格上扬

An inflationary tide is beginning to ripple through America's supermarkets and restaurants, threatening to end the tamest year of food pricing in nearly two decades.

Prices of staples including milk, beef, coffee, cocoa and sugar have risen sharply in recent months. And food makers and retailers including McDonald's Corp., Kellogg Co. and Kroger Co. have begun to signal that they will try to make consumers shoulder more of the higher costs for ingredients.

For food executives, how quickly to pass along higher costs presents difficult choices. Missteps could be costly when the economy remains weak. Many Americans, nervous about high unemployment, have pledged allegiance to their pennies and are willing to trade down on brands, switch supermarkets, opt for Burger King over Applebee's, or stop dining out altogether to save money.

'The big challenge will be, how much can we swallow and how much can we pass along?' said Jack Brown, chief executive of Stater Bros. Markets, a 167-store grocery chain in Southern California.

Kraft Foods Inc., Sara Lee Corp. and General Mills Inc. already have said they'll raise prices on certain items. Starbucks Corp. backtracked on an August announcement that it would hold coffee prices steady, saying in September it would boost prices of larger and hard-to-make drinks. This week, cereal maker Kellogg hinted that it will be raising prices, without disclosing specifics.

Grocery chains Safeway Inc. and Kroger have said they'll pass supplier increases along to consumers.

Domino's Pizza Inc. is letting consumers decide whether they're willing to pay more. The company is offering two medium, two-topping pizzas for $5.99 each but has recently offered the option of converting one of them to a premium pizza, with more toppings, for an extra $2 -- a price increase, in effect.

Costs are being driven by growing demand for meat in China, India and other emerging markets. That's driven up grain prices, which in turn boost the cost of chicken, steak, bread and pasta. Grain prices also have been nudged higher by drought in Russia, planting problems around the world and speculative trading.

Food prices are rising faster than overall inflation. The consumer price index for all items minus food and energy rose 0.8% over the year to September, the lowest 12-month increase since March 1961, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said. The food index rose 1.4%, however. The U.S. Agricultural Department is predicting overall food inflation of about 2% to 3% next year.

通胀风潮开始席卷美国各超市和餐厅，威胁着将终结近20年来食品价格最温和的一年。

最近几个月牛奶、牛肉、咖啡、可可和食糖等基本食品的价格猛涨。麦当劳（McDonald's Corp.）、家乐氏（Kellogg Co.）和Kroger Co.等食品生产和零售企业开始暗示，他们将更多地让消费者承担原料成本的上涨。

对于食品企业高管来说，如何迅速转嫁高成本是艰难的抉择。在经济依然低迷的时候，一旦失策就可能损失惨重。许多本已担心高失业率的美国人恪守节约原则，愿意在品牌上降格消费，更换超市，选择汉堡王（Burger King）而不是苹果蜂（Applebee's），或是不再外出就餐来省钱。

在南加州拥有167家店铺的连锁杂货店Stater Bros. Markets首席执行长布朗（Jack Brown）说，重大的挑战是我们自己能消化多少？可以向消费者转嫁多少？

卡夫食品（Kraft Foods Inc.）、莎莉集团（Sara Lee Corp.）和通用磨坊（General Mills Inc.）均已表示，将提高某些产品的价格。星巴克（Starbucks Corp.）取消了8月做出的将维持咖啡价格不变的声明，9月时说将提高大杯饮料和难做饮料的价格。本周麦片粥生产企业家乐氏暗示将提高价格，但没有透露更多细节。

连锁杂货店运营商Safeway Inc.和Kroger均表示，将把供应商涨价转嫁给消费者。

达美乐披萨(Domino's Pizza Inc.)让消费者自行决定他们是否愿意付出更多。该公司提供两种中等尺寸的双重口味馅料披萨，每个售价5.99美元，但最近推出新选择，消费者可以将其中一款披萨换成馅料更多的特级披萨，但要多掏两美元──实际上就是变相涨价。

中国、印度和其他新兴市场国家对肉类的需求增长推高了成本。这提高了谷物价格，转而推升了鸡肉、牛排、面包和意大利面的成本。谷物价格上涨同时也是受俄罗斯遭遇严重干旱、全球种植问题以及投机交易影响。

食品价格增幅快于整体通胀率。美国劳工统计局（Bureau of Labor Statistics）公布，9月不包括食品和能源在内的核心消费者物价指数（CPI）较上年同期增长0.8%，为1961年3月以来最低年增幅。但食品价格指数增长1.4%。美国农业部预计，明年整体食品通胀率将为2%-3%。