Shafaq News – Rome

Global food commodity prices declined three months in a row as of November, with most major categories falling except cereals, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Friday.

According to a statement from the FAO, its Food Price Index, which tracks internationally traded food commodities, averaged 125.1 points in November, the lowest reading since January. The index is 2.1 percent below its level a year ago and 21.9 percent below the March 2022 peak recorded after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Sugar prices fell 5.9 percent, reaching their lowest level since December 2020 amid expectations of ample global supply. The FAO cited strong output in southern Brazil despite the seasonal slowdown, a solid start to India’s 2025–26 harvest, and improved crop prospects in Thailand.

Meanwhile, the dairy price index dropped 3.1 percent, its fifth consecutive monthly decline, reflecting rising milk production and abundant export supplies across major producing regions. Butter and whole milk powder quotations led the decrease.

Reaching a five-month low, vegetable oil prices fell 2.6 percent, driven by declines in palm, rapeseed and sunflower oils that outweighed a small uptick in soy oil. Palm oil prices eased further on higher-than-expected Malaysian production.

Meat prices slipped 0.8 percent, led by pork and poultry. Beef prices were broadly stable, with the removal of US tariffs on imports helping offset upward pressure as exporters, particularly Australia, vied to stay competitive. Ovine meat prices increased.

Cereals were the lone category to rise, up 1.3 percent. Wheat gained 2.5 percent on expectations of Chinese purchasing, geopolitical tensions in the Black Sea, and forecasts of reduced Russian plantings. Maize prices strengthened on firm demand for Brazilian exports and weather-related delays to South American fieldwork.

In its separate cereal supply and demand report, the FAO raised its 2025 global cereal production forecast to a record 3.003 billion tons, up from 2.990 billion the previous month, largely due to higher wheat output driven by bigger-than-expected harvests, especially in Argentina.

Global cereal stocks for the end of the 2025/26 season were revised upward to a record 925.5 million tons, reflecting larger anticipated wheat reserves in China and India and higher coarse-grain stocks in major exporters.