BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 2. Amid Russia-Ukraine war, global commodities prices will be at historically high levels through the end of 2024, aggravating food prices and inflation rates, Trend reports via the latest update from the World Bank (WB).
As of July 29, 2022, the Agricultural Price Index increased by 19 percent, compared to January 2021, in particular, maize (16 percent) and wheat (22 percent) prices are higher, compared to January 2021, however, rice prices are about 14 percent lower, the report said.
“Food prices were already high before, and the war is driving food prices even higher. Commodities that have been most affected are wheat, maize, edible oils, and fertilizers. Global commodity markets face upside risks through the following channels: reduction in grain supplies, higher energy prices, higher fertilizer prices, and trade disruption due to shutting down of major ports,” the WB said.
According to the report, in the coming months, access to fertilizers, which can affect food production for many crops in different regions, will be a serious problem. Russia and Belarus are the main exporters of fertilizers, accounting for 38 percent of potash fertilizers, 17 percent of complex fertilizers, and 15 percent of nitrogen fertilizers.
“The global food crisis has been partially made worse by the growing number of food trade restrictions put in place by countries with a goal of increasing domestic supply and reducing prices. As of July 15, 18 countries have implemented 27 food export bans, and seven have implemented 11 export-limiting measures”, the bank noted.
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