Morning Briefing

"Rising food prices pushed tens of millions of people into extreme poverty last year and are reaching 'dangerous levels' in some countries, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said Tuesday as he released new data showing that the cost of grain and other staples is near a historic high," the Washington Post reports (Schneider, 2/15). About 44 million people in developing countries have been pushed into poverty because of food prices that have risen since June, according to information from the bank, which was released ahead of the G20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank heads, a World Bank press release states (2/15).