Commodity Price Boom into Perspective

The boom�and especially the 2008 rally, when crude oil prices peaked at US$ 133/barrel (up 94 percent from a year earlier) and rice prices doubled within just five months�has renewed interest in the long and determinants of commodity prices, and raised questions about whether commodity prices have reversed the downward course that most of them followed during most of the past century. coordinated policy actions at the national and international level to address food availability and food security concerns.