Nothing much important happened over the weekend. G8 finance ministers in Japan talked up the U.S. dollar. But they didn’t agree that anything like an intervention was necessary.

There’s more bad news ahead for the U.S. economy as home foreclosures continue to rise. One out of every 483 U.S. households is at some stage of the foreclosure process, and with that many displaced or struggling homeowners, the economic recovery may well take longer than expected.

Investors better keep an eye on bonds this week.While the stock market may be more fun to follow, fixed income is often a stronger gauge of investor expectations of the economy, future U.S. Federal Reserve policy, and inflation.

Last year, China was viewed as the driver behind rising commodities prices.

Now the blame for spiraling food and oil prices is increasingly being laid at the door of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke for cutting the fed funds rate to 2% and unleashing yet another wave of inflationary surplus liquidity.

The fallout is now being seen as India, China, the Philippines and Indonesia hike their own interest rates to rein in rising prices.

Consumer prices jumped 7.7% last month, down from 8.5% in April, but inflation there remains top of the list of economic concerns.

Whip Inflation Now…Where Can We Get Help on Inflation?…The Patient Died Anyway…Inflation in Asia and Europe…There Are No Good Solutions

Paola Pecora asks: “The inevitable moment arrived: higher inflation in Brazil continues rising dangerously, although it remains within the inflationary goals for the year… what can Brazil do regarding this matter?”

Retail sales actually went up last month – how is that even possible?…The Beige Book says the U.S. economy is ‘generally weak’… The sky’s the limit for electronic money – but not so for real wealth…America’s money is snapping back… Calling into question the U.S.’s car culture…the next big thing in the search for an energy alternative…and more!

¨The oil price hike is not only generating chaos in countries due to food riots but has also created transport strikes in Europe. There are shortages and even one death, ¨ says Paola Pecora.

I remember in the summer of 2006 I would face my blank computer screen on a Friday and wonder, what I could write about? The media was all Goldilocks, all the time. Today, there is such a target-rich environment.

Tucking into vol-au-vents stuffed with mozzarella, delegations from 162 countries gathered in Rome this week to attempt to map a way out of the current global food crisis.