Pakistan, May 17 -- Disruptions to global energy supplies and trade corridors are driving up the cost of food, transport and essential goods worldwide, slowing economic growth and increasing pressure on vulnerable households and debt-strapped developing countries, a UN panel was warned Friday.

The warnings came during a special meeting of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), the economic arm of the UN, focused on safeguarding energy and trade flows amid continuing volatility in global fuel markets, shipping routes and critical supply chains.

"This is not only an energy challenge. It is a development challenge. It is a financing challenge," ECOSOC President Lok Bahadur Thapa told delegates at UN Headquarters in New York.

"Above all...