Global Trade Prospects Dim as Cegetable Oils, Cereals in April

Oluchi Chibuzor

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has said global trade looks dim despite the decrease of world food commodity led by modest declines in the prices of vegetable oils and cereals.

This was stated in a statement released by the United Nations body in its monthly food prices index.

The index showed that food prices averaged 158.5 points in April 2022, down 0.8 per cent from the all-time high reached in March. 

FAO’s Index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of a basket of commonly-traded food commodities, remained 29.8 percent higher than in April 2021.

“Vegetable oil and maize prices slightly decrease after recent surge, while rice, meat, dairy and sugar prices slightly increase and global trade prospects dim. World food commodity prices decreased in April after a large jump the previous month.

“The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index decreased by 5.7 percent in April, shedding almost a third of the increase registered in March, as demand rationing pushed down prices for palm, sunflower and soy oils. Uncertainties about export availabilities out of Indonesia, the world’s leading palm oil exporter, contained further declines in international prices, “FAO said.

Commenting, FAO Chief Economist Máximo Torero Cullen, said,  “the small decrease in the index is a welcome relief, particularly for low-income food-deficit countries, but still food prices remain close to their recent highs, reflecting persistent market tightness and posing a challenge to global food security for the most vulnerable.”

However, the FAO Cereal Price Index declined by 0.7 points in April, nudged down by a 3.0 percent decline in world maize prices. 

Meanwhile, the FAO Sugar Price Index increased by 3.3 per cent, buoyed by higher ethanol prices and concerns over the slow start of the 2022 harvest in Brazil, the world’s largest sugar exporter.

The FAO Meat Price Index increased by 2.2 percent from the previous month, setting a new record high, as prices rose for poultry, big and bovine meat.