Global food prices easing, volatility still high: World Bank

Global food prices are set to decline further in 2012 as a weaker world economy dampens consumer demand while food supplies rise, the World Bank said on Tuesday, warning that a possible rise in oil prices could reverse the trend. The World Bank said prices have declined steadily but volatility has increased, including among staples like wheat, maize and rice. In some countries, domestic food prices are higher than levels in 2010, keeping pressure on poor households that spend the bulk of their income on food. The World Bank increased its monitoring of global food prices in 2009 during a food and energy price crisis that hit food-importing countries the hardest and highlighted the chronic underinvestment in agriculture in developing countries.