ROME (Xinhua) — Global sugar prices surged by nearly 10 per cent in September to their highest level since 2010, pushed by decreased production from major suppliers and concerns about energy prices and the impacts of the El Nino weather phenomenon, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said Friday.
FAO said sugar prices in September were on average 9.8 percent higher than in August due to lower sugar production. An increase in transport costs due to rising energy prices and dry weather caused by El Nino, a warm weather event in the Pacific Ocean, were also contributing factors.
With the increase in September, the FAO sub-index for sugar reached its highest level since November 2010, while other parts of the overall FAO Food Price Index saw less dramatic moves.
The index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of globally traded food commodities, averaged 121.5 points in September, compared to 121.4 points in August. At this level, the index is 10.7 percent below its value a year ago and 24.0 percent below its all-time high reached in March 2022, according to the FAO.