Rome - Saba: The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) announced that the global food price index jumped in September to record its biggest increase in 18 months, supported by a surge in sugar prices.
FAO data released in a report last night showed that the food price index, which tracks the prices of the world's most traded agricultural commodities, rose to 124.4 points last month from 120.7 in August, its highest level since July 2023, up 2.1 per cent year-on-year.
The data stated that the sugar index rose 10.4 per cent month-on-month following a downgrade in Brazil's crop outlook and concerns that India's decision to lift restrictions on the use of sugarcane for ethanol production could affect export availability.
FAO slightly raised its forecast for global cereal production for the current year, to 2.853 billion tonnes from 2.851 billion tonnes previously and attributed the increase to improved rice and wheat production forecasts that were higher than the slight decline in global solid cereal production, and FAO cut its forecast for global cereal stocks at the end of the 2025 season by 1.7 million tonnes to 888.1 million tonnes.
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