News

Small decrease in food prices in April ‘a welcome relief’ |



The FAO The average food price index reached 158.2 points in April, down 0.8% from the increase in March, but still nearly 30% higher than April 2021.

The index tracks monthly changes in the international prices of a basket of food commodities, and this decline was led by a slight decline in the prices of vegetable oils and cereals.

The most vulnerable are still at risk

“The small drop in this index is a welcome relief, especially for low-income food deficit countries, but food prices are still close to their recent highsreflects persistent market tightness and poses challenges to global food security for the most vulnerable,” speak Máximo Torero Cullen, FAO Chief Economist.

The Vegetable Oil Price Index recorded a drop of 5.7% in April, down by almost a third of the increase in March.

The FAO said that falling demand has pushed down prices of palm, sunflower and soybean oils, while uncertainties around the possibility of exports from Indonesia – the world’s top palm oil exporter – drive prices in international markets. continue to decrease.

Impact of the war in Ukraine

The FAO Cereal Price Index fell 0.7 points in April as world corn prices fell 3.0%.

Wheat prices rose 0.2%, strongly affected by the continued blockade of ports in Ukraine. It, along with Russia, accounts for about 30% of global wheat exports.

Other factors behind the increase include concerns about crop conditions in the United States, albeit held back by larger shipments from India and higher-than-expected exports from Russia.

Meanwhile, international rice prices rose 2.3%, supported by strong demand from China and the Near East.

FAO also released Update forecast World cereal supply and demand suggests that although stocks are growing, trade is likely to decline this year.

Global wheat production is projected to increase to 782 million tonnes, including a 20% decrease in harvested area in Ukraine as well as a reduction due to drought in Morocco.

Record high for meat

The FAO said the Sugar Price Index rose 3.3% in April, mainly due to higher ethanol prices and concerns about a delayed start of the 2022 harvest in Brazil, the world’s largest sugar exporter.

The FAO Meat Price Index hit a new record high last month, up 2.2% as prices for poultry, pigs and buffaloes rose. Poultry costs are impacted by export disruptions from Ukraine and an increase in avian influenza in the Northern Hemisphere.

The dairy price index also rose 0.9 percent, described by the FAO as a “persistently tight global supply,” with milk production in Western Europe and Oceania continuing to fall below seasonal levels.

The agency said the world avocado price increased the most due to high demand related to the current shortage of sunflower oil and margarine.



Source link

news7f

News7F: Update the world's latest breaking news online of the day, breaking news, politics, society today, international mainstream news .Updated news 24/7: Entertainment, Sports...at the World everyday world. Hot news, images, video clips that are updated quickly and reliably

Related Articles

Back to top button