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Vietnam’s rice exports see a wealth of opportunities
Vietnam has exported 4.1 million of tonnes of rice in the past seven months, earning US$2.01 billion, down 2.5 percent in volume and 3.4 percent in value compared to the same period last year.
Many customers including some from Hong Kong and mainland China have turned to Vietnamese rice instead of Thai rice, according to a source from the Thai Rice Exporters Association. For example, Vietnamese jasmine rice is being sold at US$550 per tonne while Thai rice is US$900 per tonne. Thailand’s exports of jasmine rice are expected to fall below 1.6 million tonnes this year, down by 0.4 million tonne over last year’s figure.
In the first half of this year, Vietnam earned US$11 million from exporting rice to Hong Kong and China, with the volumes equivalent to Thailand’s rice exports for the whole year. Meanwhile, the Philippines - the largest rice importer in the world - is stockpiling food and is likely to halt all rice contracts for some time. This has made it difficult for Thailand to export its rice.
The Vietnamese market has also responded to the government’s plan to buy and store one million tonnes of rice, with the price of rice in the domestic market increasing by VND200 per kilo.
Vietnam’s rice exports have enjoyed many advantages due to the strong euro, making the export price rise in some foreign markets.
Vietnamese businesses are also making a lot of effort to seek out rice export contracts. According to Vietnam Food Association (VFA), businesses have signed contracts to export an estimated 6 million tonnes by the end of July this year.
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