Rising demand puts pressure on rice export prices
According to the Vietnam Food Association (VFA), since the beginning of the week, the export price of rice in the world market has been continuously adjusted upward; in which, Thai rice increased by about 12 USD/ton, Pakistani rice increased by 15-17 USD/ton.
Overall, over the past week, Thai and Pakistani rice prices have both increased by about $25/ton.
Contrary to that trend, after being adjusted up by 10 USD/ton in the trading session on November 21, 2023, Vietnam's rice price decreased slightly by 5 USD/ton. On November 24, 2023, Vietnam's 5% broken rice export price was at 658 USD/ton, 25% broken rice price was at 643 USD/ton. Meanwhile, Thailand's 5% broken rice was offered at 590 USD/ton, 25% broken rice was offered at 548 USD/ton; Pakistan's 5% broken rice was priced at 583 USD/ton and 25% broken rice was priced at 503 USD/ton. Currently, Vietnam's rice export price is the highest in the world.
Explaining the reason why world rice prices continued to rise sharply after nearly 3 months of sharp decline, Mr. Nguyen Quang Hoa - CEO of Duong Vu Rice said: Many countries in the world still have a need to buy rice in large quantities. Specifically, recently, the Philippine Department of Agriculture requested traders to import an additional 1 million tons of rice in 30 days, to increase domestic supply and control the price of the national staple.
Another noteworthy information, according to the latest forecast of the US Department of Agriculture, in 2024, Indonesia and Nigeria will be among the largest rice buyers in the world with an expected output of about 2 million tons.
“This amount of imported rice is expected to come from Vietnam and Thailand. This is an opportunity for rice exporting enterprises,” Mr. Hoa assessed.
Vietnamese rice's advantage increases as world rice export prices increase
Rice traders believe that, in addition to the quality advantage, to win export contracts, low prices are a huge plus. If world rice exports increase sharply while Vietnamese rice prices remain stable, the advantage of Vietnamese rice will be even greater.
Talking to Lao Dong reporter, Mr. Nguyen Quang Hoa emphasized: Sometimes, just a difference of 1-2 USD/ton can win or lose a rice export contract, so if both the quality and price of rice are stable, the advantage for export will be even greater. Vietnam has the advantage of stable quality, delicious rice that creates an unforgettable flavor so that people will not forget it.
“Although Vietnam’s rice prices are the highest in the world, Vietnamese rice has many advantages, the biggest of which is its delicious quality because it is exported as soon as it is harvested. It is favored by world consumers because they always eat new rice, which has a higher nutritional content than rice harvested from previous crops. Therefore, Vietnam does not worry about not being able to sell rice. This explains why the supply of Vietnamese rice for export is never redundant,” Mr. Nguyen Quang Hoa emphasized.
In response to concerns that Vietnam's rice prices, which are the highest in the world, will have difficulty competing with rice from Thailand, Myanmar, Pakistan, etc., Mr. Pham Thai Binh - Director of Trung An High-Tech Agriculture Joint Stock Company also affirmed: Competition is not a concern, Vietnam's rice export volume has increased steadily over the years and is increasingly prestigious in the world market.
“Is it necessary to worry about competition when prices are high but still sell, and many businesses currently have no rice to sell. So why should we reduce prices? The Vietnamese rice industry operates according to market supply and demand, if it cannot sell, the seller will naturally have to reduce prices and vice versa,” said Mr. Pham Thai Binh.
While Mr. Nguyen Nhu Cuong - Director of the Department of Crop Production (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) said that in 2023, Vietnam could export 7.5-7.8 million tons of rice, many traders confidently affirmed: If there is more supply from Cambodia, Vietnam's rice export volume could reach over 8 million tons.
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