KEY MESSAGES
↗ International prices of wheat and maize increased further in February, mainly supported by weather-related concerns and currency movements. Export price quotations of rice also continued to strengthen, although the increases were capped by subsiding global demand for Indica supplies.
↗ In East Africa, in the Sudan, prices of the main staples: sorghum, millet and wheat, continued to increase in February and reached record highs, underpinned by the removal of the wheat subsidies and the strong depreciation of the Sudanese Pound.
↗ In Southern Africa, in Madagascar, prices of rice hit record highs at the start of the year, as a result of tight supplies following a sharp drop in the 2017 output to a substantially below-average level and a weaker currency.
↗ In West Africa, prices of coarse grains continued to generally increase in February and reached levels above those a year earlier despite the good harvests gathered in late 2017, due to a strong demand for stock replenishment, coupled with localized production shortfalls and insecurity in some areas.
