Grocery shopping should be less taxing on Americans’ wallets over the next year.
Rabobank said on Wednesday that people should get some relief from food inflation in 2024 as prices for essentials such as sugar, coffee, corn and soybeans tend to ease after three years of high prices. report. Increased supply will help limit rising costs even though consumer demand remains low. People still struggle with rising inflation and interest rates, the bank said.
Analysts at Rabobank said wheat prices could continue to rise due to weather conditions and possible Russian export restrictions, and costs for all staples were not expected to ease.
“The main beneficiaries of the downward trend in agricultural products should be bakery, dairy and animal protein producers, who can expect lower prices for their inputs, including many grains and oilseeds,” they said. There is.
Food prices have fallen after the pandemic, extreme weather and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. measurement World prices in September fell nearly 11% compared to the same month last year. However, these cost reductions have not yet been felt by grocery stores, which are also facing rising energy and labor costs.
Food prices have been steadily rising since 2020, but recently numbers The government has indicated that the cost of filling your grocery cart is easing. Food prices rose 2.4% in October from a year earlier, staying just above the Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation target.
However, consumers are not out of the woods yet. Beef, veal and frozen vegetable prices were all up at least 10% in October compared to 12 months earlier, while egg prices were down nearly 24% over the same period. Other foods whose prices have fallen in less than a year include bacon, sausage, ham and lunchmeat.
