Food Price Index of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations soared in May

　　The FAO Food Price Index averaged 127.
1 points in May 2021, a month-on-month increase of 5.
8 points (4.
8%) and a year-on-year increase of 36.
1 points (39.
7%).
May set the largest month-on-month increase since October 2010.
This also marks the 12th consecutive month that the food price index has risen.
It has climbed to the highest level since September 2011, which is only 7.
6% lower than the peak of 137.
6 points in February 2011.
The sharp rise in the May index reflects the soaring prices of vegetable oils , sugar and grains , while prices of meat and dairy products have also strengthened.

 

　　The FAO Grain Price Index averaged 133.
1 points in May, an increase of 7.
6 points (6.
0%) from the previous month and a year-on-year increase of 35.
7 points (36.
6%).
Among the major cereals, the international corn price rose the most, rising 12.
9 points (8.
8%) in May to 75.
6 points (89.
3%), the highest level since January 2013.
In the face of continued strong demand, the downward adjustment of Brazil's production outlook has further increased the already tightening global supply pressure.
But towards the end of the month, mainly affected by the expected increase in US production prospects, corn prices began to fall.
International barley and sorghum prices also increased in May, with increases of 5.
4% and 3.
6% respectively.
After the spike in wheat prices at the beginning of May, crop conditions in producing areas such as the European Union and the United States improved, leading to a sharp drop in prices at the end of the month.
However, wheat prices in May still rose by 8.
0 points (6.
8%) from the previous month and 27.
7 points (28.
5%) from the same period last year.
International rice prices remained stable in May, and logistics and transportation costs led to sluggish trading activities throughout the month.

 

　　The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index averaged 174.
7 points in May, an increase of 12.
7 points (an increase of 7.
8%) from the previous month, achieving the 12th consecutive month of increase.
The continued strength of the index mainly reflects the rising prices of palm oil, soybean oil and rapeseed oil.
Due to weak palm oil production growth in Southeast Asian countries and rising global import demand, stocks in major exporting countries continue to remain at a relatively low level, and their international quotations continued to rise in May, reaching the highest level since February 2011 Level.
As far as soybean oil is concerned, the expectation of strong global demand, especially in the biodiesel sector, has supported its price hikes, while international rapeseed oil prices have been supported by continued tight global supply.

 

　　The FAO Dairy Price Index averaged 120.
8 points in May, an increase of 1.
7 points (1.
5%) year-on-year.
The continuous year-on-year rise has made the index 26.
4 points (28%) higher than the same period last year, but it is still higher than in 2013.
The monthly peak was 22.
8% lower.
Leading the rise in May was international quotations for skimmed milk powder, reflecting strong import demand and limited spot supply in the EU; despite the huge supply in New Zealand, high import purchases, especially represented by China, pushed up the price of whole milk powder.
Cheese prices also rose due to reduced supply in the EU and strong demand.
In contrast, the increase in New Zealand's export supply caused the price of butter to fall, marking the end of its 11-month uptrend.

 

　　The FAO Meat Price Index* averaged 105.
0 points in May, up 2.
3 points (2.
2%) from the previous month, rising for the eighth consecutive month and up 10% year-on-year, but still nearly 12 points lower than the highest value set in August 2014 %.
In May, the quotations of all meat varieties increased, mainly due to the accelerated pace of import and procurement in East Asian countries, especially China.
The slowdown of beef and mutton slaughter coupled with the increase in internal demand in major poultry and pork producing areas, the superposition of multiple factors has led to a tight global supply, which has also provided support for the increase in all meat prices.

 

　　The FAO Sugar Price Index averaged 106.
7 points in May, a month-on-month increase of 6.
8 points (6.
8%), rising for the second consecutive month and reaching the highest level since March 2017.
The increase in international sugar price quotations is mainly related to the delayed harvest and concerns about Brazil’s crop reduction.
Dry weather conditions continue to plague the world’s largest sugar exporter and affect the growth of the country’s crops.
The increase in crude oil prices and the further strengthening of the Brazilian real against the U.
S.
dollar restrained Brazilian shipments and therefore constituted additional support for higher prices.
However, a large number of exports from India played a role in mitigating the sharp rise in prices and avoided a greater increase in prices that month.

 

　　* Unlike other commodity categories, when the FAO Food Price Index is calculated and released, most of the prices used to calculate the FAO Meat Price Index are still uncertain; therefore, the meat price index in recent months is a comprehensive forecast price And the actual price.
This sometimes requires significant adjustments to the FAO Meat Price Index to arrive at the final figure, which in turn may have an impact on the FAO Food Price Index.