The world price index of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations fell in June to its lowest level in more than two years, driven by lower costs for sugar, vegetable oils, cereals and dairy products. The organization said on Friday that its index, which tracks the prices of the most traded food commodities globally, averaged 122.3 points in June, compared to 124.0 points after adjustment in the previous month. The June reading was the lowest since April 2021 and means the index is now 23.4% below its March 2022 high. The higher expectations were driven almost entirely by better prospects for global wheat production, the FAO said, with forecasts rising 0.9% to 783.3 million tonnes. The FAO Cereal Price Index declined 2.1% in June compared to the previous month, with declines in maize, barley, sorghum, wheat and rice prices, while the vegetable oil price index fell 2.4% month-on-month, hitting its lowest level since November 2020, driven by lower global prices for palm and oil oils. Sunflower. The sugar price index also declined, down 3.2% from May.
