GLOBAL FOOD PRICES HIT 10-YEAR HIGH IN SEPT

Thu 07 October 2021:

Global food prices rose for the second month in a row in September, reaching their highest monthly average since October 2011, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

The FAO Food Price Index averaged 130 points in September, up 1.5 points or 1.2 percent from August, due to tighter supply and strong demand for commodities like wheat and palm oil.

The trade-weighted index, which analyzes international market prices of five major food product categories, was 32.8 percent higher in September this year than in September 2020, according to the FAO.

The cereal price index in September climbed 2% from August, with a strong rise in world wheat prices due to tightening export availabilities amid strong demand.

“Among major cereals, wheat will be the focus in the coming weeks,” said FAO Senior Economist Abdolreza Abbassian, noting that demanded would need to be tested against fast-rising prices.

The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index went up by 1.7% as international palm oil prices reached 10-year highs led by robust global import demand and concerns over below-potential production in Malaysia as the Southeast Asian nation faces a shortage of migrant labor.

Last month, the Dairy Price Index increased by 1.5% from August over solid import demand and seasonal factors in Europe and the Oceania region driving up international quotations for all dairy products, especially butter, said the organization.

In September, the FAO Sugar Price Index increased by 0.5 percent month over month, as severe weather and higher ethanol prices in Brazil stoked fears of reduced supply by the world’s largest sugar exporter.

In September, the Meat Price Index stayed unchanged from the previous month.

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