Key Messages:

• Global wheat export prices stabilized in April 2024 after declining for three consecutive months, while maize prices increased month‑on-month. International rice prices declined by 1.8 percent in April, largely due to harvest pressure.
• In most countries monitored by FAO, staple food prices remained at historically high levels in March and April 2024. In many countries, macroeconomic difficulties and high food distribution costs continue to drive elevated prices of both domestically produced and imported food commodities.
• In Haiti and parts of East and West Africa, protracted crisis situations have had a negative impact on food production and market functionality, resulting in high food prices. Weatherrelated shocks have reduced harvest prospects and placed upward pressure on maize prices in parts of Southern Africa and South America. By contrast, ample supplies and favourable harvest prospects led to declines in domestic wheat prices in parts of Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia, and Far East Asia.