Pandemic Eases, Indonesia Faces Pressure from Rising Food Prices

High inflation is threatening global economic growth. Rising food prices have been a major contributing factor since the end of last year, a situation exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, beginning February 24, 2022.

Indonesia is also experiencing pressure from rising food prices. This is reflected in the increase in the food price index starting in the fourth quarter of 2021, as shown in the graph.

According to data from the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS), the food price index stood at 115.67 in May 2022. This means that in May 2022, there was inflation of 0.9% compared to the previous month (month-to-month/m-to-m).

Compared to the end of last year, food prices experienced inflation of 4.84% (year-to-date/ytd). Similarly, compared to May 2021, Indonesian food prices experienced inflation of 5.82% (year-on-year/yoy). This annual food price inflation is the highest in the last two years.

Compared to February 2022, when the Russian invasion occurred, the national food price index increased by 4.77%.

For information, overall inflation until May of this year reached 3.55% (yoy). Meanwhile, the price index for food, beverages, and tobacco reached 5.62% (yoy).

The following shows the increase in global food prices based on the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) data for May 2022 (yoy):

World food price index: 22.85%

* Vegetable oils: 31.12%
* Cereals: 29.70%
* Dairy products: 16.90%
* Meat: 13.61%
* Sugar: 12.64%