Vietnam rice shipments up 40 pct

Vietnam shipped 4.9 million tons of rice in the first nine months this year, up 40 percent from a year ago, the Vietnam Food Association said.

Export earnings, however, dropped 6.2 percent, or US$135 million, the association said.

In September alone local exporters shipped 401,190 tons of rice worth nearly $150 million.

Rice production in Vietnam, the world’s second-largest exporter, is expected to hit a record 37 million tons this year on improved yields and expanded acreage, the Foreign Agricultural Service of the US Department of Agriculture said Monday.

Previously, the agency had forecast a decline to 35.99 million tons this year from 36.93 million tons last year.

Vietnam is carrying out a program to buy 500,000 tons of rice from farmers following a bumper summer-autumn crop, which has just ended.

The Vietnam Food Association said its members have bought more than 370,000 tons of rice, or 75 percent of the whole plan. The purchases will continue until September 20 and the rice is expected to be kept in stock until January 20 next year.

 Tuoi Tre, Bloomberg

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