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Pirates Plunder Consumers?

Posted on November 19, 2008 by Leah Hazard
Topics: Imports/Exports, Informal Economy, Justice
Countries: Somalia
The Saudi-owned oil tanker MV Sirius Star is shown at anchor on November 19, 2008, off the coast of Somalia. Photo: <a href="http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/pictures/WAS04.htm">William S. Stevens/Reuters, courtesy of Alertnet.org</a>
The Saudi-owned oil tanker MV Sirius Star is shown at anchor on November 19, 2008, off the coast of Somalia. Photo: William S. Stevens/Reuters, courtesy of Alertnet.org

Ahoy, consumers. Beware of yer pocketbooks. Pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia are up 75 percent this year, threatening price hikes for everything from the gas in your car to the shoes on your feet.

The price of oil increased this week after Somali pirates hijacked a Saudi oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden. British researcher and author Roger Middleton says Asian exporters may be forced to ship their goods the longer route around the Cape of Good Hope to reach European and American shores.

The longer route would add up to three weeks to the delivery of goods from Asia and of oil and gas from the Middle East to European markets. Someone will have to pay for that extra time – very probably the consumer. For Europe and the eastern seaboard of America, this inflation is a real possibility.

The brashness of these modern-day pirates has also forced people to rethink their romantic, Disneyesque notions about pirates — and how desperate the Somali people truly are.

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From the Archives

Panama Canal Expansion and the Global Economy

Posted on November 20, 2006
Previously filed under: South America, Global Economy
The Panamanian vote to upgrade and expand the capacity of the Panama Canal will have a significant impact on the role Panama will play in the world economy.
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Keywords: Panama canal, global marketplace, shipping, South America, Panama

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