UN’s food agency FAO says world price index fell in February for a seventh consecutive month as lower prices for all major cereals more than offset the rising price of sugar and meat.
The Food and Agriculture Organization’s price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 117.3 points in February, down from a revised 118.2 points the previous month. The February reading was the lowest since February 2021.
Looking ahead to 2024, the UN agency pegged wheat output up 1 percent from a year earlier at 723 billion kg thanks to favourable weather in North America and top exporter Russia, as well as in China, India, Iran, Pakistan and Turkey.
The UN agency’s sugar index, by contrast, rose 3.2 per cent month on month in February, reflecting persistent concerns over top producer Brazil’s upcoming output and forecast production declines in Thailand and India.
