ROME, May 5 (Xinhua) -- The international food prices index rose in April for the first time in a year, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said Friday in a report, reflecting higher prices for sugar and meat.
The FAO Food Price Index (FFPI) tracks monthly changes in the international prices of commonly-traded food commodities. In April, the FFPI was 0.6 percent higher with prices of cereal, vegetable oil and dairy marking a monthly fall.
The index remains 19.7 percent below its all-time high set in April 2022 in the wake of the start of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Sugar prices climbed 17.6 percent from March, representing the third consecutive monthly rise for this category.
The FAO said this was related to concerns that global sugar supplies would atrophy in the wake of downward production forecasts from India and China, as well as reduced production in Thailand and the European Union. These concerns offset the forecast of strong production from Brazil, the world's largest sugar supplier.
Meat prices were modestly higher in April with the index rising by 1.3 percent in April, but remaining 6.1 percent below its value a year ago. The FAO said an increased demand for pig meat and chicken from Asia was a factor pushing prices higher.
Except sugar and meat, prices in the other main sub-indexes all declined, consistent with the trend from the previous 12 months.
Prices for grains and cereals, the largest component in the index, were 1.7 percent lower in April, and 19.8 percent below their value from a year earlier. Wheat prices declined by 2.3 percent in April, their lowest level in nearly two years as exports from Russia and Australia were higher than forecast, FAO said.
Meanwhile, vegetable oil prices were lower for the fifth consecutive month, falling 1.3 percent based on stronger-than-expected supply of soy, rapeseed, and sunflower oil, while dairy prices declined 1.7 percent based on lower global demand.
Before April, the FFPI had declined for 12 consecutive months for the first time on record. The FAO said that the main factors pushing prices lower over the last year were softening demand and obstacles in global supply chains caused by the Ukraine crisis.
Despite the downward trend in prices, FAO officials have repeatedly warned in recent months that fuel supply issues and other market uncertainties are threatening residents in many of the world's poorest nations.
The FFPI is based on worldwide prices for 23 food commodity categories covering prices for 73 different products compared to a baseline year. The FAO began calculating the index in 1961.
The next FFPI should be released on June 2, 2023.
