At the source: The latest report from an ongoing Associated Press investigative series into the Thai seafood industry says U.S. customs records show shrimp peeled by modern-day slaves made its way into the supply chains of major U.S. food stores and retailers such as Walmart, Kroger, Whole Foods, Dollar General and Petco, along with restaurants such as Red Lobster and Olive Garden. Despite repeated promises by businesses and government to clean up the country’s $7 billion seafood export industry, the AP reports its investigation has found shrimp peeled by slaves is also reaching Europe and Asia. The AP reports the shrimp are in some of America’s best-known seafood brands and pet foods, including Chicken of the Sea and Fancy Feast, which are sold in grocery stores from Safeway and Schnucks to Piggly Wiggly and Albertsons. AP reporters went to supermarkets in all 50 states and found shrimp products from supply chains tainted with forced labor. Read the full story.
On the way down: Oil fell below $35 a barrel in New York this morning for the first time since 2009 as Iran reiterated its pledge to boost crude exports, bolstering speculation OPEC members will exacerbate the global oversupply, Bloomberg reports. Futures fell as much as 2.7% to $34.67 a barrel in New York, the lowest since Feb. 19, 2009. Oil futures lost almost 11% last week, the biggest drop in a year. Meanwhile, U.S. natural gas tumbled to the lowest intraday level since January 2002 amid forecasts that mild weather will persist through the end of the month. January futures fell as much as 5.6% this morning to $1.879 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gas is down 35% this year, headed for its second annual decline.
On the way up: This week brings the equivalent of the Super Bowl for economists, with the Federal Reserve all but certain to raise interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade, USA Today reports. Much of the drama after Wednesday’s meeting will revolve around the signals Fed policymakers send about the pace of subsequent hikes. Before it acts, however, the Fed will review a final batch of economic reports on inflation, housing and industrial production. The most significant will be the Labor Department’s report Tuesday on the consumer price index for November. Persistently low inflation has been a big reason the Fed hasn’t yet lifted its benchmark rate despite strong job growth and near-normal unemployment of 5%. Low oil prices and a strong dollar, which makes imports cheap for U.S. consumers, have tamed consumer prices, but Fed officials expect those effects to fade. Read the full story.
