World Food Price Falls For Fifth Month In August

The United Nations food agency's world price index fell for the fifth month in a row in August.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Friday that its price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 138.0 points last month versus a revised 140.7 for July.

The July figure was reportedly previously put at 140.9.

The index has fallen from a record of 159.7 in March, hit after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The August reading was, however, 7.9% higher than a year earlier.

It said the cereal price index fell 1.4% month-on-month in August, but the maize price index rose 1.5% last month as hot, dry weather reduced the outlook for production in Europe and the United States.

It added that the vegetable oil, sugar, dairy and meat price indices all fell, partly reflecting improved supplies.

World cereal use in 2022/23 is expected to surpass production at 2.792 million tons, leading to a projected 2.1% fall in global stocks compared with 2021/22 to 845 million tons.

This will represent a stocks-to-use ratio of 29.5%, down from 30.9% in 2021/22 but still relatively high historically.