The International Monetary Fund said Tuesday the current boom in fueland food prices, the biggest commodity price gain in 30 years, ishaving an uneven impact and is hurting the world's poorest countriesmost. VOA's Barry Wood reports.  

In its first analysis of thisyear's sharp run up in oil and grain prices, the IMF said inflationarypressures are rising as a result.

IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn

said the unprecedented rise in food and fuel costs havepushed several developing countries to a tipping point. "If food pricesrise further and oil prices just stay the same, then some governmentswill be unable to feed people and at the same time maintain thestability of their economy," he said.

Eighteen African countriesare hardest hit, with the worst impact being felt in Liberia,Guinea-Bissau, Eritrea, Togo, Comoros, Malawi and Guinea.

IMFeconomist Thomas Helbling detailed the huge rise in commodity pricessince 2003. "Metals prices are about three times as high and foodprices are about two times as high," he said.

Oil prices havequadrupled since 2003. Helbling said rice prices, which more thandoubled over the past year, are beginning to come down. "This year wewould actually expect rice prices, which have come down from recenthighs, to come down a bit further," he said.

The IMF has not yet determined the extent to which world economic growth has been slowed by these price increases.