ROME (Reuters) – Earth food prices rose for a ninth consecutive thirty day period in February, hitting their best level given that July 2014, led by jumps in sugar and vegetable oils, the United Nations food items agency said on Thursday.
The Food and Agriculture Organization’s food items value index, which actions monthly adjustments for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy solutions, meat and sugar, averaged 116. points previous month compared to a a little revised 113.2 in January.
The January figure was earlier provided as 113.3.
The Rome-centered FAO also reported in a assertion that throughout the world cereal harvests remained on program to strike an yearly record in 2020, introducing that early indications pointed to a even more improve in creation this year.
FAO’s cereal rate index climbed 1.2% thirty day period on thirty day period in February. Among the big coarse grains, sorghum selling prices increased the most, rising 17.4% on the month and 82.1% yr on calendar year, pushed by powerful desire from China.
Maize and rice selling prices edged up whilst wheat export price ranges remained mostly secure, FAO mentioned.
Sugar charges climbed 6.4% thirty day period on thirty day period amid issues around supplies in 2020/21 because of generation falls in important making countries and powerful demand from Asia. [SOF/L]
The vegetable oil rate index greater 6.2% to access its maximum amount because April 2012, with palm oil rates soaring for a ninth month, lifted by worries about reduced inventories in significant exporting nations.
Dairy rates rose 1.7%, when the meat index posted a modest .6% attain. FAO stated pig meat quotations fell, strike by diminished purchases from China amid hefty oversupply and a rise in unsold pigs in Germany owing to a ban on exports to Asian marketplaces.
FAO elevated its forecast for the 2020 cereal period to 2.761 billion tonnes from an estimate of 2.744 billion designed final thirty day period pointing to a 1.9% improve calendar year on 12 months.
That revision reflected a 7.5 million tonne increase in the globe wheat manufacturing estimate, pushed by just lately unveiled official information from Australia, the European Union, Kazakhstan and Russia.
The forecast for world wide rice production was also lifted by 2.6 million tonnes from final thirty day period on much more buoyant production forecasts from India.
FAO lifted its forecast for global cereal stocks ending in 2021 by 9 million tonnes to 811 million which would characterize a .9% decrease yr on yr.
“Looking in advance, recent indications counsel a smaller increase in environment cereal creation in 2021,” FAO said.
“While most of the wheat crop in the northern hemisphere is continue to dormant and southern hemisphere nations around the world are nonetheless to plant, FAO’s preliminarily forecast for worldwide wheat generation in 2021 points to a 3rd consecutive yearly increase, to 780 million tonnes, a new file.”
Reporting by Crispian Balmer editing by Jason Neely