KYIV. April 7. UNN. Food prices fell for the twelfth month in a row due to a drop in global prices for grains and vegetable oils, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said today. UNN.
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“In March, the basic indicator of world prices for food products continued to fall, which has been noted for the twelfth month in a row; this was due to the decrease in global quotations of grain crops and vegetable oils,” the report reads.
Details
In March, the FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly global price trends for the most common food commodities, fell 2.1% from the previous month and 20.5% from its peak in March 2022. “This is due to a combination of factors such as large supply volumes, sluggish import demand and the continuation of the Black Sea Grain Initiative,” noted the FAO.
Compared to February, the prices for crops decreased by 5.6%, and world prices for wheat fell by 7.1%, which was contributed by such factors as “a large harvest in Australia, improved conditions of crops in the EU, large volumes of supplies to the Russian Federation and continued exports by Ukraine from its Black Sea ports” , indicated in the FAO. Global corn prices fell 4.6%, driven in part by expectations of a record harvest in Brazil, while rice prices fell 3.2% on speculation of ongoing or imminent harvest campaigns in major countries – exporters including India, Vietnam and Thailand.
Vegetable oils fell 3% from a month earlier and 47.7% from March 2022, as tight supply and sluggish import demand on global markets pushed soybean, canola and sunflower oil prices lower. This more than offset the increase in global palm oil prices, which was caused by lower production volumes in Southeast Asia due to floods and the introduction of a temporary export ban by Indonesia.
Prices for dairy products decreased by 0.8%. Butter prices rose on the back of persistently strong import demand, while cheese prices fell due to reduced purchases by most of Asia’s leading importing countries amid rising export supply from leading exporters.
On sugar prices, on the other hand, rose 1.5% from February due to concerns about the deterioration of species for harvest in India, Thailand and China, the indicator reached the highest value since October 2016. Favorable views of the sugar cane harvest in Brazil, whose harvesting campaign is about to begin, kept upward pressure on prices; this was also facilitated by the drop in oil prices, as a result of which the demand for ethanol decreases.
Prices for meat slightly increased (by 0.5%). World beef quotes rose under the influence of rising domestic prices in the US due to an expected reduction in supply, while pork prices rose amid pre-holiday demand growth in Europe. Despite bird flu outbreaks in a number of major exporting countries, poultry prices continued to fall for the ninth consecutive month amid sluggish import demand.
Addition
Inflation in Ukraine slowed down to 24.9%. Vegetables are the leaders in price growth, eggs have become cheaper