8/5/22

The FAO’s Food Price Index came out today (Friday) showing an overall decline in commodity prices for July. Greatly helping to bring those prices down was the cereal price index, showing a much-welcomed 11.5% drop from June.  World wheat prices, in particular, saw the most significant drop of 14.5%. It was the second straight month of declines since the onset of 2022.

The main factor helping grain prices to come down was the deal brokered between Ukraine and Russia to open and operate the Black Sea ports.  News of the deal’s success, however temporary it may prove to be, immediately helped to bring prices down.

Maize prices also received an assist from the deal, dropping 10.7%.  Argentina and Brazil further helped to alleviate the pressure with harvests from last year that came to bear earlier than expected.

Of course, both maize and wheat can’t come down so sharply without also bringing down the remaining grain crops. Sorghum dropped 12.8% and barley plummeted 12.6%.

But, perhaps most notably, rice prices fell for the first time since the start of the year, riding on the backs of inconsistent demand and fluctuations in the major currencies.