金融时报选文SURGE IN BIOFUELS PUSHES UP FOOD PRICES1生物燃料与人类争食2ASIAN PRAGMATISM PROVES ITS VALUE3香港退休基金是怎样运作的4Q&A ON A SADLY PREDICTABLE DEBT CRISIS6全球次贷危机七大问题8GLOBALISATIONS EXILES KEEP THE HOME FIRES BURNING9移民汇款养活发展中国家？11各工作组要指定一名人员承担信息报送工作，负责搜集和整理本组及相关成员单位的各类信息，经组长审核把关后及时报综合组，每周至少报送一条工程进展信息，每季度报送工作总结。SURGE IN BIOFUELS PUSHES UP FOOD PRICES By Javier Blas and Jenny Wiggins in LondonTuesday, July 17, 2007 A surge in the production of biofuels derived from corn, wheat and soyabeans is helping to push up food prices so sharply that the World Food Programme, the United Nations agency in charge of fighting famine, is finding it difficult to feed as many hungry people as it has in the past.Josette Sheeran, WFPs executive director, said in an interview with the Financial Times that rising food prices were “already having an impact on WFP operations” and added: “There is a realisation we are facing a new level of challenge.”Food commodity prices are surging because of a number of factors including rising demand from China and bad weather, but the potential consequences of the rising demand for biofuels has caught the attention of those in the business of feeding the world. Mark Spelman, head of the Accentures global energy practice, said the biofuel industry was at risk of creating a public backlash similar to wind power generation as food inflation continues.“Windpower was a very popular renewable source of energy until a wind-farm was planned in someones backyard,” he said.Still, Paul OBrien, overseas director for the humanitarian organisation Concern Worldwide, said higher food prices could benefit farmers in emerging markets if food aid programmes find it cheaper to spend cash donations in the countries they distribute food in, rather than in the US and Europe.“What we would encourage is food aid agencies to look more locally . . . and for donors to give money to the WFP,” Mr OBrien said.Some 77 per cent of the WFPs food purchases are made in developing countries. Last year it spent $460m (34m, 226m) in such countries, making the largest cash purchases in Uganda, Ethiopia and Pakistan. The United Nations organisation feeds some 90m people annually.Ms Sheeran also said that her organisation and others were trying to make it easier for poorer farmers to benefit from rising demand for food, either by helping African farmers become more efficient and tapping new markets or by helping small farmers in Latin America benefit from the rising demand for biofuels.“In a world of growing population, the African farmer will be needed,” she said.The rise in food prices has also underlined the difficulties the WFP and other food aid programmes face when determining which type of donations they receive are more effective cash or commodities.About half of the donations the WFP receives are now made in cash, the rest in commodities. When the organisation started, it benefited mainly from surplus food donated by wealthy nations including the US. It now receives cash from many countries, and often, as is the case with US, must spend that money on products grown in the donor country.Marc Cohen, research fellow at the USs International Food Policy Research Institute, said that the rise in food prices had reawakened questions over the best way to distribute food aid.One idea that has been discussed in the past, Mr Cohen said, is for donors to contribute to a global reserve or co-ordinated national reserves of food so that food can be stockpiled.“Now that prices are high, the idea may get on the table again,” he said.生物燃料与人类争食 作者：英国金融时报哈维尔布拉斯(Javier Blas)、珍妮威金斯(Jenny Wiggins)伦敦报道2007年7月17日 星期二 从玉米、小麦和大豆中提取生物燃料的生产活动大幅增长，大幅推升了食品价格，导致世界粮食计划署(World Food Programme)发现自己难以向与过去同样多的饥饿人口提供粮食。世界粮食计划署是联合国(UN)抗击饥荒的主管机构。世界粮食计划署执行干事约塞特施林(Josette Sheeran)在接受英国金融时报采访时表示，不断上涨的粮食价格“已经对世界粮食计划署的运作造成了影响”，并补充称：“我们认识到，我们正在面临新层次的挑战。”粮食类大宗商品价格的飙升，是由许多因素造成的，其中包括中国需求的不断上升和恶劣的气候等，但生物燃料需求上升的潜在后果，已引起了世界粮食界相关人士的关注。 埃森哲(Accenture)全球能源业务负责人马克斯佩尔曼(Mark Spelman)表示，随着粮食价格的继续攀升，生物燃料行业有可能像风力发电一样，激起公众的强烈反对。他表示：“风力曾是一种非常受欢迎的可再生能源，但是，到有人计划在自己的后院建设风力发电场时，情况就改变了。”尽管如此，人道主义组织关爱世界(Concern Worldwide)海外事务负责人保罗欧布莱恩(Paul OBrien)表示，如果各粮食援助机构发现，将捐赠的现金花在它们援助粮食的国家，比花在欧美更便宜，那么粮价的上涨可能会使新兴市场的农民受益。欧布莱恩表示：“我们将鼓励（粮食援助机构）更多地着眼于本地并鼓励捐赠者把钱交给世界粮食计划署。”在世界粮食计划署购买的粮食中，大约有77%产自发展中国家。去年，该机构在这些国家花费了4.6亿美元，最大金额的现金购买发生在乌干达、埃塞俄比亚和巴基斯坦。这个联合国机构每年为大约9000万人提供粮食。施林还表示，她所在的机构和其它组织正努力让较为贫穷的农民更容易从粮食需求增长中获益，方法是以下两种办法中的一种：一是帮助非洲农民提高效率，开发新市场；二是帮助拉美小农从生物燃料需求的增长中获益。她表示：“一个人口不断增长的世界，将会需要非洲农民。”粮食价格的上涨，还突显出世界粮食计划署和其它粮食援助机构在要判断哪类捐赠更有效时面临的难题：是接受现金，还是大宗商品。目前，在世界粮食计划署收到的捐赠中，大约有一半是现金，另一半是大宗商品。在创立之初，该组织主要受益于包括美国在内的富国所捐赠的剩余粮食。现在，该组织从许多国家收到的是现金，而且往往就像在美国一样，必须把这些资金用于购买捐赠国生产的产品。美国国际粮食政策研究所(International Food Policy Research Institute)研究员马克科恩(Marc Cohen)表示，粮食价格高企再度提出了有关粮食援助最佳分配方式的问题。科恩表示，过去曾讨论过一种想法，即捐赠者向一个全球性储备机构，或协调一致的国家粮食储备机