December Food Price Index averaged 188.6 points, a drop of 1.7%
After three months of stability, global food prices declined in December on global oversupply and recorded carryover stocks, said the Food and Agricultural Organisations (FAO) of the United Nations in its latest report. Agricultural commodities' downward move was supported by falling oil prices and strengthening US dollar.
The December Food Price Index averaged 188.6 points, a drop of 1.7% from November, led down by sugar and palm oil. For the whole of 2014, the Food Price Index averaged 202 points, down 3.7% from 2013, marking the third consecutive annual decline.
Meanwhile, global cereal production in 2014 is estimated at a new record of 2532 million tonnes (including rice in milled terms), 10 million tonnes higher than last month's forecast and 7 million tonnes (0.3%) above last year's peak. World cereal stocks is estimated at the close of 2015 marketing seasons to rise by 4 million tonnes since last month and now stands at 628 million tonnes, 50 million tonnes (8.6%) above their opening levels and the highest since 2000.
This year-on-year drop came despite sub-index for meat rising to an all-time high annual average of 199 points, up 8.1% from 2013. Cereals, by contrast, dropped 12.5% from the previous year, buoyed by forecasts of record production and ample inventories....MORE
