The price of a kilogram of sugar rose 31.43 percent during the first half of September compared to the same period in 2022, its largest increase since 2016, according to records from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) and the Ministry of Economy (SE ).
During this period, in markets, tianguis, supply centers or grocery stores in the Mexican capital, a kilogram of the sweetener reached an average price of 33 pesos in bulk, according to the Federal Consumer Prosecutor’s Office (Profeco).
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For the last week of September, according to Profeco’s price monitoring, in supermarkets or convenience stores the cost ranged from 24 to 46 pesos, whether in own or renowned brands.
Yesterday, in Soriana stores, a kilogram of refined sugar from the own brand was sold for 59.70 pesos and brown sugar from the Zulka brand was sold at 52 pesos. Walmart offered the same price for this same presentation and brand.
But the biggest price increase is observed in the 50-kilogram package of sugar, which is usually sold wholesale. Statistics from the National System of Information and Market Integration of the SE indicate that in September the package of standard sugar was sold for around 1,349.52 pesos, 48 percent more than in the same period a year before, while the package of refined reached 1,595.11 pesos, 52 percent more than in the same month last year.
The drought is behind the increase in sweetener and other agricultural products in Mexico, highlighted the Agricultural Market Consulting Group (GCMA).
If the effects of the weather and higher prices in the country continue, the GCMA predicts that the cost of sugar cane at the end of the year could rise up to 25 percent.
The Bank of Mexico (Banxico) states in a report that if the high heat waves continue, the production of other merchandise will also be affected, especially fruits and vegetables, which will eventually have repercussions on inflation.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) highlighted this Friday in an analysis that the price of sugar worldwide rose due to exchange volatility and the meteorological phenomenon of “El Niño”, which is when produces elevated warming of the equatorial Pacific Ocean.
According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), of the United Nations (UN), temperatures of 2.7 degrees Celsius above normal have been recorded since February, which were more intense on the coast of South America.
The sugar price index calculated by the FAO rose 9.8 percent in one month, reaching its highest level in 13 years.
The agency also attributed the rise to the recent increase in oil prices, which encourages producers to transform part of their harvest into ethanol, which reduces the amount of sugar on the market.
This increase “is mainly due to the growing fear that global supply will decrease during the next campaign in 2023-2024,” the FAO explained in its monthly report.
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According to the Organization, the first estimates point to a drop in production in Thailand and India, two large producers, due to the “El Niño” meteorological phenomenon.
Currently, Mexico imports more than 1.5 thousand tons of sugar, both refined and standard. In the period from January to July, imports of this product reached 150 million 769 thousand dollars, which represented an annual increase of 1,166 percent, according to the Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (Sader).
2023-10-07 08:00:00
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