Surging and soaring rice prices raise specter of Asian food scare, HSBC says

MANILA (Bloomberg): Rising food prices are likely to prove an additional concern for central bankers trying to subdue inflation as the cost of rice - a staple food in Asia - surges the most since 2008, according to HSBC Holdings Plc.

"The memory of the 2008 Asian food price scare sits deep,” economists led by Frederic Neumann said in a research note on Friday.