REUTERS/Megan Varner/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsPARIS, Sept 8 (Reuters) - The United Nations food agency's world price index fell in August to a new two-year low, reversing a rebound seen the previous month, as a decline in most food commodities offset increases for rice and sugar.
The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 121.4 points in August against a revised 124.0 for the previous month, the agency said on Friday.
The July reading was initially given as 123.9 in a rebound from a two-year low in June.
The drop in the overall index reflected declines for dairy products, vegetable oils, meat and cereals, despite a jump in FAO's rice benchmark to a 15-year high following Indian export restrictions, the agency said.
In contrast, the agency's rice index surged by almost 10% month-on-month as India's decision in July to ban Indica white rice exports disrupted trade at a time of tight availabilities ahead of new-crop harvests, FAO said.
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