Sugar: World Markets and Trade (May 2026)

Report profile

Sugar: World Markets and Trade is a biannual analytical report from the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, published each May and November. It presents U.S. and global sugar trade, production, consumption and stock data together with expert analysis of the developments shaping international sugar markets.

Coverage

The report covers raw and refined sugar across the major producing and consuming regions — Brazil, India, the European Union, Thailand, China and the United States — and tracks supply-and-demand balances, trade flows and ending stocks, highlighting policy, weather and competitiveness factors that move world trade in sugar.

What it offers

Unlike a bare price spreadsheet, this publication is a market-and-trade analysis: it interprets production and trade trends, assesses the outlook for exports and imports, and explains the drivers behind year-on-year change. It is designed for policymakers, traders and analysts monitoring global sugar value chains.

Key takeaways

In 2025/26 global sugar production is forecast up 8.3 million tonnes year over year to 189.3 million, with higher output in Brazil and India expected to more than offset lower European Union production. Increased shipments from Brazil, India and Thailand are projected to outweigh reduced EU exports, while ending stocks are forecast to rise, led by India and China.

Access

The current and past editions, including downloadable PDFs and underlying data, are available from the USDA FAS data portal linked above.

Original link: https://www.fas.usda.gov/data/sugar-world-markets-and-trade-05282026