Global food prices decreased in May due to significant drops in international quotations of cereals, vegetable oils and dairy products, according to a Friday report released by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
The FAO Food Price Index averaged 124.3 points in May, down 2.6 percent from April.
The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index declined by 8.7 percent in May, averaging 48.2 percent below its year-earlier level.
Sugar prices grew for the fourth month in a row, rising 5.5 percent from April to over 31 percent more than a year ago.
The FAO Cereal Price Index fell 4.8 percent from the previous month, led by a 9.8 percent drop in global maize prices. International rice prices, on the other hand, rose further in May, supported by Asian purchases and tighter supply in several exporting nations such as Vietnam and Pakistan.
