ROME, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- World wheat prices rose by 3.2 percent in October partially due to tighter supplies from the U.S. following a downward production revision, the Rome-based United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) Food Price Index showed on Friday.
The index was unchanged from September after six consecutive months of decline.
The grains and cereals sub-index rose by 3 percent, building on a 2.2 percent increase a month earlier. The FAO explained this by "continuing uncertainties" about a program that allows Ukraine to safely export wheat from its Black Sea ports due to its conflict with Russia. Lower production levels in the United States were also a factor, it said.
Corn prices rose by 4.3 percent, reflecting lower production expectations in the United States and the European Union combined with a dry planting season in Argentina.
The increase in grain and cereal prices was balanced by a 1.6 percent drop in prices for vegetable oils, a decrease of 1.7 percent for dairy prices, a reduction of 1.4 percent for meats, and a 0.6 percent decline in prices for sugar. All four sub-indexes remained above their levels from a year ago, however, due to dramatic increases from the early months of the Ukraine crisis.
The FAO's Food Price Index is based on worldwide prices for 23 food commodity categories covering prices for 73 different products compared to a baseline year. The next FAO index is scheduled to be released on Dec. 2.
The FAO is headed by Director General Qu Dongyu, former vice-minister at China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.
