Food prices on rise again but down 1.6% since 2012
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Global food prices rose slightly in December after staying flat the month before, but prices on average declined 1.6 percent in 2013 compared to the previous year, the United Nations food agency said yesterday.
The Food and Agriculture Organization’s price index, which measures monthly price changes for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy, meat and sugar, averaged 206.7 points in December, a marginal rise from a revised 206.4 in November.
Plentiful supplies pushed down international prices for oils, sugar, and cereals except for rice, the FAO said, but that was balanced by rises in meat and dairy, which hit record highs in 2013.
FAO senior economist Abdolreza Abbassian said he saw ample supply and good opportunities for rebuilding inventories as likely to continue to weigh on cereal prices for the next few months.
Increases in meat and dairy prices could taper, he said.
“Considering how high they are ... perhaps the scope for stronger increases in the next few months are much less than in the past few months,” Abbassian said.
Record harvests drove down cereals prices particularly in wheat and maize over 2013, and the average cereals price index for December was 191.5 points, its lowest since August 2010.
Meanwhile, the dairy price index averaged 243 in 2013, its highest annual average to date, the FAO said. Demand from Japan and China drove up beef in particular, the FAO said.
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