By Wheat prices have risen on international markets following India’s announcement of a restriction on exports of the basic commodity, as well as lower production prospects in Ukraine following Russia’s invasion, according to the UN food agency.
In May 2022, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Price Index averaged 157.4 points, down 0.6% from April. However, the index, which analyses monthly changes in the worldwide prices of a basket of regularly traded food items, was 22.8 percent higher in May 2021 than in May 2021.
In May, the FAO Cereal Price Index averaged 173.4 points, up 3.7 points (2.2%) from April and up as high as 39.7 points (29.7%) from May 2021. It reported on Friday that international wheat prices climbed for the fourth month in a row in May, averaging 56.2 percent higher than the previous year and just 11% below the record high hit in March 2008.
The sharp rise in wheat prices was prompted by India’s announcement of an export embargo, which came amid concerns about crop conditions in numerous major exporting countries, as well as lower production expectations in Ukraine due to the war, according to the report.
Maize prices fell 3.0% due to somewhat improved crop conditions in the United States, seasonal supply in Argentina, and the impending start of Brazil’s primary maize harvest, but they remained 12.9% higher than in May 2021, according to the report. In May, international rice prices rose for the seventh month in a row.
Quotations improved in all major market sectors, although the most extensively traded Indica types saw the smallest monthly rises (2.6%) due to adequate supply, notably in India, it added. The FAO Sugar Price Index fell 1.1 percent from April to May, owing to a good harvest in India, which boosted global availability expectations.
Limited worldwide import demand and high global availability forecasts, owing mostly to a bountiful crop in India, drove the latest monthly decrease in international sugar price quotes, according to the report. Last month, India slapped an embargo on wheat exports in an effort to keep high prices in check, citing worries that the blistering heat wave might reduce wheat output.
Wheat exports were permitted based on permission provided by the Indian government to other nations to satisfy their food security needs, as well as their governments’ requests. V. Muraleedharan, Minister of State for External Affairs, told the Ministerial Meeting on Global Food Security Call to Action, which was chaired by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during the US Presidency of the UN Security Council for the month of May, that India is committed to ensuring that such negative impacts on food security are effectively mitigated and the vulnerable are cushioned against sudden changes in the global market.
We have announced some restrictions regarding wheat exports on May 13, 2022, in order to manage our overall food security and meet the requirements of neighbouring and other vulnerable developing nations.” V. Muraleedharan, Minister of State for External Affairs, told the Ministerial Meeting on Global Food Security Call to Action, which was chaired by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during the US Presidency of the UN Security Council for the month of May, that India is committed to ensuring that such negative impacts on food security are effectively mitigated and the vulnerable are cushioned against sudden changes in the global market.
