The soaring food prices that have triggered global political and economic turmoil over the past year have finally shown the first tentative signs of stabilising.

The United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation food price index, considered the best measure of global food inflation, saw its first decline in 15 months in April, as wheat, dairy, sugar and soyabean prices fell.

Jose María Sumpsi, the FAO’s assistant director-general, told the Financial Times earlier this week that with the exception of corn and rice, food inflation appeared to be “reaching its peak”, although he did not expect prices to start falling. ... Read full article