World food commodity prices were little changed in March compared to a month earlier, as higher vegetable oil prices were partially offset by lower cereal values.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations reported on Friday that its food price index - which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of a set of globally traded food commodities - averaged 127.1 points last month. That is almost 7% above a year earlier although still 20.7% below its all-time high of 160.2 reached in March 2022 in the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The FAO said the vegetable oil price index was up 3.7% in March, as palm, soy, rapeseed and sunflower oils were all driven higher by “robust global import demand.” Compared to a year ago, the vegetable oil price index averaged almost 24% higher in March versus the same month last year, the FAO added.
International palm oil prices rose for the second consecutive month, primarily due to persistently tight supplies in major producing countries in Southeast Asia, where outputs were at their seasonal lows, the FAO said. Meanwhile, soyoil moved higher on its price competitiveness relative to other oils – and resulting increase in demand – while the gains in rapeseed and sunflower oils were attributed to dwindling supplies from major exporters coinciding with a firm global import demand.
On the other hand, the FAO cereal price index declined by 2.6% in March and was down 1.1% from March 2024.
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