В» The FAO Dairy Price IndexВ averaged 141.6 points in May, down 5.1 points (3.5 percent) from April, marking the first decline after eight consecutive monthly increases, but still 20.5 points (16.9 percent) higher than its level in May of last year. International soy and rapeseed oil prices also declined somewhat in May, chiefly weighed by sluggish import demand in view of elevated costs in recent months. Meanwhile, world price quotations for sunflower oil fell from recent record highs, with stocks continuing to accumulate in Ukraine owing to logistical bottlenecks. Apart from demand rationing, the removal of Indonesia's short-lived export ban on palm oil exerted additional downward pressure on prices, although a further price drop was contained by lingering uncertainties over the country's export prospects. International palm oil prices weakened moderately in May. The monthly decline mainly reflects lower prices across palm, sunflower, soy, and rapeseed oils. В» The FAO Vegetable Oil Price IndexВ averaged 229.3 points in May, down 8.3 points (3.5 percent) month-on-month, yet remaining markedly above its year-earlier level.

Quotations strengthened in all the major market segments, but monthly increases were least pronounced (2.6 percent) for the most widely traded Indica varieties, amid ample supplies, especially in India. International rice prices increased for the fifth successive month in May. Similarly, international sorghum prices also fell in May, declining by 3.1 percent, while spillover from the strength in wheat markets and concerns over crop conditions in the European Union boosted barley prices by 1.9 percent. Slightly improved crop conditions in the United States of America, seasonal supplies in Argentina and the imminent start of Brazil's main maize harvest led maize prices to decline by 3.0 percent however, they remained 12.9 percent above their level of May 2021. By contrast, international coarse grain prices declined by 2.1 percent in May but remained 18.1 percent above their value a year ago. The steep increase in wheat prices was in response to an export ban announced by India amidst concerns over crop conditions in several leading exporting countries, as well as reduced production prospects in Ukraine because of the war. International wheat prices rose for a fourth consecutive month, up 5.6 percent in May, to average 56.2 percent above their value last year and only 11 percent below the record high reached in March 2008.

В» The FAO Cereal Price Index averaged 173.4 points in May, up 3.7 points (2.2 percent) from April and as much as 39.7 points (29.7 percent) above its May 2021 value.

Meanwhile, cereal and meat price indices increased. The drop in May was led by declines in the vegetable oil and dairy price indices, while the sugar price index also fell to a lesser extent. В» The FAO Food Price Index* (FFPI) averaged 157.4 points in May 2022, down 0.9 points (0.6 percent) from April, marking the second consecutive monthly decline, though still 29.2 points (22.8 percent) above its value in the corresponding month last year. The FAO Food Price Index fell for the second consecutive month in May

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