FAO FPI Lowest Point Since 2010

The Food Price Index (FPI) published by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) fell for the sixth month in a row in September 2014 averaging 191.5 points down 5.2 points from August and 12.2 points from the same time last year. The fall means that the index has now reached its lowest point since August 2010 and makes it the longest continuous period of falls since the 1990s. The five commodity groups that make up the FPI basket showed different degrees and directions of change with sugar and dairy the main contributors to the fall followed by cereals and oils, while meat remained firm.

World Food Prices Down For Second Month

The FAO Food Price Index fell for the second consecutive month in May 2014 to an average of 207.8, down 2.5 points (1.2%) from April and 7 points (3.2%) from May 2013. March saw the index rise to a ten month high of 213 points but it fell away again in May due to price pressures from the dairy, cereal and vegetable oil sectors. Sugar increased and meat remained stable.

FAO FPI Continues To Fall

The FAO Food Price Index (FPI) continued to fall in September as the index averaged 199.1 points, 2.3 points below the August average and 11 points on the beginning of the year. The index has fallen now for 5 consecutive months. The fall was driven by a sharp fall in the international price of cereals. The prices of all the other components of the index rose namely dairy, oils, meat and sugar.

World Food Prices Still Much Higher Than Last Year

The FAO Food Price Index averaged 211.3 in June nearly 2 points below its revised May value but still almost 11 points above the figure for June Last year. The slight decline reflects lower sugar and dairy prices and slightly less severe price decreases in cereals and oils. Meat prices went up 2% in June.

FPI Steady At 215

The FAO Food Price Index for May 2013 remained around 215 but averaged slightly below the April value of 215.8 at 215.2 points. It was fully 10 points higher than in May last year. It is also nearly 10% below the February 2011 peak.

Cereals increased in price in May up 4 points to 238.9 and almost 17 points, or 7.8%, above Last May. A strong recovery in maize prices was the main contributor. Wheat and rice were largely unchanged. Oils and fats were unchanged. The increases in cereals prices were offset by falls in the dairy and sugar indices. The Dairy Price Index fell by 9 points to 249.8 in May. April had seen exceptionally high prices. The biggest fall within the Dairy Price Index was in skimmed milk powder. Sugar prices responded to good harvesting conditions in Brazil and the generally abundant supply of sugar globally. Meat prices in May remained about the same as in April.

FPI 7% Fall In 2012

The Food Price Index for December 2012 published by the FAO was 1.1% down on November averaging at 209. It was the third consecutive fall in the FPI and the main contributing factors were falls in the international prices of cereals, oils and fats. The fall meant that for the whole year of 2012 the index averaged 7% less than in 2011 at 212. The biggest falls in prices in 2012 were in sugar (17.1%), dairy products (14.5%) and oils (10.7%). Cereals (2.4%) and meats (1.1%) had much more modest falls in prices. The fears of a food crisis in July when food prices were rising were therefore allayed.

Fall In Global Food Prices In April

Global food prices fell by over 4 points in April according to the monthly Food Price Index (FPI) of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). The FAO index of 213.9 compares with the index of 217 for March 2012. The main components of the index all fell in price with the exception of the Meat Price Index which increased by 0.9 points. The price indices of the dairy, cereals, oils and sugar sectors all fell in April. The index had risen month on month since November 2011. Prices are still much lower than the same month last year when the index was at 234.9.