What is less well known, however, is that many countries have instituted consumer protections against such hidden taxes, while the United States, which has some of the developed world's highest interchange fees, has left them completely unregulated.
The guidelines were developed by the Nutrition Division of the Ministry of Health, in consultation with various government ministries, universities, nutrition associations and institutes, consumer and non-governmental organizations, and with the support of the World Health Organization and UNICEF.
The airlines instituted a consumer bill of rights in December, after a year of pressure from Congress to improve service.
According to Caroline Rush, chief executive of the British Fashion Council, which instituted a consumer-facing London Fashion Weekend of shows after the regular round of shows: "The B.F.C. board has been talking for some time about fashion shows better connecting to consumers and being a direct driver for sales.
Germany has a "pro-environment" tradition but hasn't instituted a large consumer tax credit for EVs, hasn't offered EV drivers HOV-lane access, and hasn't offered manufacturers substantial subsidies for technological innovation.
The code is the first step in a larger plan by the Obama administration to institute a wide-ranging consumer privacy bill of rights that would give consumers some rights to access, control and correct the personal details companies collected about them.
Mr. Angenendt at BHF-Bank said the jump had mostly resulted from demand for cars, which rose after the government instituted incentives for consumers to trade in older cars for newer, more-efficient models.
His bill merely instructs the Federal Communications Commission to study the issue and institutes an " Internet Consumers' Bill of Rights" that critics have disparaged as worthless.
In Paris, the national statistical institute Insee reported that French consumer confidence rose for a third consecutive month, defying expectations of a fall, and suggesting that the election of President François Hollande might have buoyed hopes for the future.
The expensive clothes are an armour that protects them from it," says Renato Meirelles, the president of Data Popular, a research institute that specialises in the consumer habits of Brazil's lower and middle-classes.
But last year alone, the institute found, it cost American consumers $1.1 billion in higher-priced tires.
