Farmers dry unhusked rice in Hong Dan district, the Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – High rice import demand from Vietnam’s major markets in thesecond quarter is expected to help exporters continue good overseas shipmentsin the first three months of this year.
Some foreign news sources reported that in lateMarch, the State Logistics Agency of Indonesia (Bulog) signed contracts topurchase 300,000 tonnes of rice from Vietnam and 200,000 tonnes from Thailand.This is the third time Indonesia has imported rice since the beginning of 2018.
Chairman of the Vietnam Food Association (VFA)Nguyen Ngoc Nam confirmed the report, saying that Bulog invited the VietnamNorthern Food Corporation and the Vietnam Southern Food Corporation to supplythe rice. This contract will be carried out from April to July this year.
The Philippines, another major market, is alsoplanning to import rice in large amounts in the second quarter, the VFA said,adding that the country will import 250,000 tonnes of rice to augment its ricereserves. The auction will open in May.
Meanwhile, rice import demand from China,Malaysia and Japan has also helped warm up the Asian rice market, promisinggood prospects for Vietnam’s rice shipment in the second quarter.
[Infographics: Vietnam likely to export 6.5 million tonnes of rice in 2018]
According to the agriculture ministry’sDepartment of Crop Production, about 980,000 hectares of winter-spring rice inthe Mekong Delta, the biggest rice hub in Vietnam, had been harvested as ofMarch 29 with average productivity of 6.5 – 6.6 tonnes of unhusked rice per hectare.
Some rice exporters said the market in theMekong Delta has become vibrant since mid-March due to abundant rice supply,supporting their export activities.
The US Department of Agriculture predictedVietnam could export 6.7 million tonnes of rice this year thanks to shipmentsto China and expansion in other markets.
The Ministry of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment reported that rice exports in January – March totalled 1.36 milliontonnes worth 669 million USD, representing year-on-year rises of 9.4 percent involume and 24 percent in value. China remained the top importer of Vietnameserice, accounting for 24.4 percent of total exports.-VNA
VNA
