Supermarket trade bodies are warning that Brits are likely to face higher food prices for longer than expected, as Vladimir Putin looks to block Ukrainian grain exports.
According to The Telegraph, global food markets have shot up in the past fortnight despite inflation being down, as Russia fires missiles upon Ukrainian ports used to transport grain.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently warned the collapse of the Black Sea grain export deal, which ensured safe passage for shipments, would push up prices by 15%.
As a result, The World Bank found that wheat prices on global markets have jumped 14% in the past fortnight while maize is up 12%.
The World Bank warned on Monday that the restrictions could cause “considerable increases in world prices and induce price volatility”.
It comes as The British Retail Consortium (BRC) revealed that inflation had been continuing to slow since April, but is still up nearly 15% since the start of the year.
According to the BRC, goods excluding food cost 4.7% more than they did in July 2022, down from June’s inflation rate of 5.4%.
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Chief executive of the BRC, Helen Dickinson, said Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s grain storage sites risked pushing up prices of items such as bread and breakfast cereals.
She told The Telegraph: “Russia’s withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative and subsequent targeting of Ukrainian grain facilities, as well as rice export restrictions from India are dark clouds on the horizon.
“We expect some global commodity prices to rise again as a result, and food prices will be slower to fall.”
Dickinson added: “Leading the cuts was clothing and footwear, where retailers mitigated wet weather with larger discounts.
“These figures give cause for optimism, but further supply chain issues may add to input costs for retailers in the months ahead.”
