Global Grain Prices Reach Three-Year High Amid Rising Demand and Supply Constraints

Global grain prices have reached a three-year high in August 2026, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Rice Price Update. The FAO All Rice Price Index (FARPI) averaged 109.0 points in August, up 0.5% from July and 7.4% from a year earlier.

The increase was led by gains in the Indica segment, with Indian parboiled rice quotations rising 4% monthly to US$371.1 per tonne in August. This is also 1.0% higher than its level a year ago. Vietnam's 5-per-cent broken rice was quoted at US$441.4 per tonne, up 4% from July and 13% year-on-year.

The FAO attributed the rise to delays in the early summer-autumn harvest, higher cost pressures, and reductions in local production and imports from Cambodia. Thailand's 100-per-cent B white rice rose 1% to US$477.3 per tonne, while its parboiled 100-per-cent rice increased 1.0% to US$485.3 per tonne.

In Bangladesh, retail prices of aromatic rice have surged by Tk 80-100 a kg in the last three months, reaching Tk 210-230 a kg. The FAO said price movements in Thailand were mixed and were influenced partly by appreciation of the baht against the US dollar.