Based on World Bank data, in September 2023, the average global price of raw sugar reached US$0.58 or Rp9,066 per kilogram (assuming an exchange rate of Rp15,633 per US$).
This price is up 9.8% month-on-month and surged 48.4% year-on-year, marking the highest price in the last decade.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), this year's surge in global sugar prices is linked to the emergence of El Niño.
El Niño is a phenomenon of warming sea surface temperatures that can cause weather anomalies such as drought in some parts of the world and increased rainfall in others. This can disrupt agricultural production.
"The increase in global sugar prices is mainly driven by growing concerns that the El Niño phenomenon will impact global production prospects," stated the FAO in its September 2023 World Food Situation report.
"In India, below-average rainfall has severely impacted sugarcane growth. Prolonged dry weather in Thailand is also expected to negatively affect sugar production during the 2023-2024 season. Meanwhile, in Brazil, rain has hampered field operations in several areas," said the FAO.
Global sugar prices are likely to rise further in the coming period. According to the FAO, the current price increase is currently being held back by the harvest in Brazil, [the world's largest sugarcane producer](https://databoks.katadata.co.id/datapublish/2022/02/09/10-negara-produsen-tebu-terbesar-di-dunia).
"The ongoing harvest (in Brazil) is currently limiting price increases. The weakening of the Brazilian real against the US dollar, as well as low ethanol prices, are also contributing to holding back the rise in world sugar prices," said the FAO.
The price increase is not only evident on a global scale but also nationally.
According to data from the Ministry of Trade, in September 2023, the average price of granulated sugar in Indonesia reached Rp14,940 per kilogram, the highest in the last three years.