Vietnam to ban rice export for some months

I have just heard the following: Vietnamese will start banning their export of white rice from October shipment onward. Until when I'm not sure. At least till the end of this year, supposedbly.

Egypt cuts rice crop area by nearly half

Egypt cut by almost half the amount of land it used to sow rice in 2010 versus the previous year, saving the country 5-6 billion cubic metres of water, the official state news agency MENA said on Thursday. The amount of land on which rice was grown was reduced to 1.2 million feddans (1.2 million acres) from 2.2 million last year, MENA said, citing the Water Resources and Irrigation Minister Mohamed Nasreddin Allam. Egypt, the Arab world's most populous nation, wants to reduce its domestic production of the water-intensive crop. Bread is the main staple for most Egyptians, and Egypt imports more than half its wheat needs. An official was quoted as saying this month that Egypt wanted to achieve 70 percent wheat sufficiency. But rice is still a popular staple food. Climate change threatens a fragile farm sector in Egypt and population growth may outstrip water resources as early as 2017. Under a 1929 agreement with the Nile Basin countries, Egypt is entitled to 55.5 billion cubic metres a year, the lion's share of the Nile's total flow of around 84 billion cubic metres. The North African country has been in dispute with other Nile Basin countries eager for a greater share of river water to support power generation projects and agricultural growth.

Pakistan Non-basmati rice production to fall almost 20%

Production of non-basmati rice will fall by about 15 to 20 per cent from previous estimates, estimate rice exporters. “We had expected nonbasmati rice cultivation to yield about 4.5 million tons this year but due to flooding in various parts of Sindh, where much of this kind of rice is grown, we are now expecting up to 800,000 tons to be lost,” said Chairman of Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (Reap), Malik Jahangir, on Wednesday. Jahangir explained that Larkana, Jacobabad, Shikarpur and Dadu districts are the main areas in Sindh where non-basmati rice is cultivated. Large parts of these districts have been flooded in recent days. Irrigation officials have also warned that fresh flooding may also be witnessed in many of these areas. Many of the crops that were cultivated in these areas have been destroyed. Agricultural experts also fear that gushing waters have washed away the nutrient- rich top soil of many agricultural areas. They say that farmers may not be able to achieve high yields and in some of the worst affected areas, cultivate crops at all for the next few years. Cultivation of high-quality basmati rice has also been affected although not as badly as non-basmati varieties. “Most of the areas where basmati is grown are in Punjab and have not been affected significantly by the floods,” commented the Reap chairman. Meanwhile, prices of rice have increased in local markets during Ramazan. Supplies have been affected due to flooding, Reap officials said, adding that transportation from fields to mills and then to markets is difficult and more costly because of the flooding. Jahangir asserted that because of supply constraints, the price of basmati rice has increased by Rs10 to Rs70 per kilogramme in wholesale markets while rates of nonbasmati rice have risen by Rs5 per kilogramme. Last month, the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) issued a report that said Pakistan would lead an increase in global rice exports. The FAO report had also predicted the country’s paddy production for 2010 to be about 10.2 million tons, 0.1 million tons higher than the previous year. The report had cited that non-basmati varieties of rice are leading export growth for the country. This means that downgraded estimates for production of non-basmati rice will also likely hurt the country’s export prospects. Experts point out that earlier in the year, non-availability of water had been a cause of concern for farmers. They say that while production of basmati rice will probably not suffer much, achieving record exports may not be a feat that can be accomplished, at least not this year.

India firm makes low offer in Bangladesh rice tender

Indian firm M. Sons Group made the lowest offer of $477.51 a tonne, including cost and freight, in a Bangladesh tender to buy 30,000 tonnes of non-basmati parboiled rice that opened on Thursday, a food official said. The tender was issued by the state grains buyer early this month, and shipment is within 40 days of signing the contract, which will take place after the cabinet committee's approval. The offer was $33.51 per tonne higher than the country's last tender that opened last week, in which the same firm submitted the lowest offer of $444 a tonne to supply a similar quantity of parboiled rice. The highest offer was $575 a tonne, made by the Thai firm Daow, the food official said. The government has doubled its planned rice imports for this year to 600,000 tonnes after wheat prices spiked due to export curbs in the drought-ravaged Black Sea region. Deals to ship around 345,000 tonnes of Black Sea wheat to Bangladesh have been cancelled so far. Chicago wheat futures hit a two-year high after Russia barred shipments in early August, and since then prices have fallen by more than 20 percent but are still well above levels before the surge. On Thursday, the Bangladesh state grains buyer issued one new tender to import 30,000 tonnes of parboiled rice and another to buy 50,000 tonnes of wheat, both with an offer deadline of Aug. 30. Bangladesh, the world's fourth-biggest rice producer, harvested a record high rice crop of more than 34.45 million tonnes in the year to June, but the government failed to procure enough rice locally. The government's food reserves have come under added pressure as it has started selling rice at subsidised rates to help the poor during the Muslim fasting month Ramadan and to contain food inflation, now running at nearly 11 percent. Besides issuing tenders, the government is also trying to buy grains through state-to-state deals to build buffer stocks, which stand at 700,000 tonnes against a target of 1.5 million tonnes. Bangladesh has signed a contract to import 100,000 tonnes of 15 percent broken rice with Vietnam's top rice exporter, Vinafood 2, at $389 per tonne, while negotiating to buy more rice from there, food officials said. India also has allowed the export of 300,000 tonnes of non-basmati rice and 200,000 tonnes of wheat to Bangladesh. Food security is a major concern for the government as nearly 38 percent of the country's population of more than 150 million still live on less $1 a day.

Thailand not worried by Vietnam Dong devaluation

The devaluation of Vietnam’s dong by another two per cent early this week will not have any appreciable impact on Thailand’s rice exports, Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai said on Thursday. “Vietnam is a major competitor for rice exports, but our neighbour now has no more rice for sale,” Mrs Porntiva said. The ministry would keep a close watch on the situation, particularly on the value of baht. The private sector had repeatedly expressed concern about its appreciation, she said. The private sector was worried that the baht might strengthens to 30 to the US dollar, a rise of seven to eight per cent. Businesses warned that such an appreciation would affect the country’s exports in the fourth quarter of the year, she said. The minister was confident that the Bank of Thailand was capable of keeping the baht value at a suitable level and that exports would grow by 20 per cent this year, as targeted. Dusit Nonthanakorn, chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, said there is a possibility Vietnam would again devalue the dong the near future, although this would not have much impact on Thailand’s exports. “But the government must keep a close watch on the situation and try to stabilise the baht value at levels in line with the currencies of other Asian countries. By doing this, manufacturers’ trade competitiveness will not suffer,” Mr Dusit said.

Importation needed to solve Philippines' rice shortage

The Department of Agriculture said yesterday it is bent on importing rice to solve a shortage despite President Benigno Simeon Aquino III’s order to stop it, a report of the Philippine News Agency said. “We need to import rice badly because the grain output slid by 10.24 percent for the first semester,” Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala told reporters at the DA Central Office in Quezon City. Alcala said he is worried because if the wet cropping season does not produce much of the staple, the country may have a shortage and need new importations. The DA chief said the harvest was down to 6.62 million metric tons (MTs), down by 750,000 MTs from the output of 7.37 million MTs for the first semester of 2009. He admitted that unless the weather becomes kinder and if the intervention measures set in motion by the DA will not suffice, the country will have to import rice anew. However, he stressed the volume would not be in the vicinity of the 2.45 million MTs imported by the previous administration. The Philippines did not import rice in 1991, 1992, and 1994 but foreign purchases escalated from 2001 onwards. Alcala stressed El Niño was the culprit and explained the prolonged dry season was bad for rice, which is dependent on adequate rainfall and irrigation water to increase yield.

Chinese Demand Hikes Vietnam Prices

Vietnamese deputy Agriculture Minister Nguyen Thanh Bien has revealed that bulk orders for rice by Chinese traders are driving up rice prices in Vietnam. According to the Vietnam Food Association (VFA), Chinese traders have bought some 600,000 MT of Vietnamese rice since April. In the same period, the price of paddy rice rose from 3,500 dong (0.19 dollars) to 4,600 dong (0.25 dollars) per kilogram. China is not usually one of the major importers of Vietnamese rice, and rarely buys any later than May, Vietnamese media said. The higher Chinese demand is not expected to affect Vietnamese food security. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development estimates the country will harvest some 39 million MT of paddy rice this year, and can export between 7.2 and 7.4 million MT of processed rice.

Bangladesh Seeking To Buy Vietnamese Rice

According to local media reports, the government of Bangladesh is sending an official delegation to Vietnam to lock-in supplies of rice in an attempt to offset defaults in wheat imports.

Iraq Issues Tender To Buy 30,000 MT rice

The Grain Board of Iraq has issued a tender to buy at least 30,000 MT of rice of any origin making it the fifth rice tender this year. Bidders are directed to submit heir offers latest by Aug. 15, and bids would be valid until Aug. 22. The last time Baghdad issued a rice tender was in July when it bought 150,000 MT. Some 120,000 MT were Thai rice purchased at $488.85 a ton and the remaining 30,000 MT were purchased from an Indian company called LMJ at $444/ton. The tender originally asked for 30,000 MT rice.

Insider report on Pakistan rice and flooding situation

This comes from one of my connections in Pakistan. Pakistan is facing severe rains and flood. The Indus river passing through the centre of the country has damaged communication means, properties and crops specially in province of Punjab and Sind, the rice growing areas. Further rains have been forecasted and will be continued till 1st week of September. Cotton, wheat and Pulses crops have damaged / destroyed. It is expected in the coming months prices of essential items will further rise while during the last 2 weeks prices of local rice market have increased by $ 30 - 40 PMT. The water level in Punjab have started falling and it is expected the situation will be clear within next 10days. Currently the big wave of flood water is passing through the Sind province reported some rice growing area Irri-9 and Irr-6 have also been effected by the flood water. The situation will be clear after falling of water level. NEWS FROM NET Pakistan Floods Destroy Crops Worth Billions By news desk on August 13,2010 Flood surges triggered by unprecedented monsoon rains have swept devastating low-lying areas of Punjab and Sindh provinces, the densely populated economic and agricultural heartland of Pakistan with estimates of around half a million MT each of wheat and sugar crops been totally destroyed. Pakistan's Finance Ministry said this week the floods would hit growth and this year's gross domestic product growth target of 4.5 percent would be missed, though it was not clear by how much. Growth was 4.1 percent in the last fiscal year. On damage to the rice crop, the farmers' association put the losses at about 200,000 MT of rice, an estimate also supported by a Singapore-based trading company. The United Nation's Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has also warned of serious threats to the livelihoods and food security of millions. The U.N. has started a $460 million appeal for aid on Aug. 11 and the U.S. has pledged $55 million in assistance. The U.K. allocated 16.8 million pounds ($26 million) and earmarked up to 31.3 million pounds for relief aid