Rice exports set for major breakthroughs in 2023

According to data compiled by the General Department of Vietnam Customs, as of December 15, the country's rice exports reached over 6.8 million tonnes, raking in more than US$3.3 billion, up 15.2% in volume and 6.5% in value compared to the same period from last year.

With these positive figures, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development anticipates that the country will fetch between US$3.5 billion and US$3.6 billion from exporting over seven million tonnes of rice this year.

Most notably, the export price of rice has continued to edge up over recent days with the price of local 5% broken rice for export and 25% broken rice standing at US$453 and US$438 per tonne, representing a rise of US$10 and US$5 per tonne, respectively.

This comes as the price of 5% broken rice in November also surpassed that of Thailand to be traded at US$447 per tonne, while Thailand's 5% broken rice was sold at only US$440 per tonne.

With regard to the rice industry’s achievements last year, Do Ha Nam, vice president of the Vietnam Food Association, emphasized that despite fluctuations occurring in the global market, rice exports to major markets such as the Philippines recorded strong growth of nearly 30%.

Furthermore, 2022 also marked a successful year as Vietnamese rice made inroads into the Middle East and European markets, with a high price of over US$1,000 per tonne. The European market saw ST24 and ST25 fragrant rice branded Trung An traded at over US$1,000 per tonne.

Pham Thai Binh, general director of Trung An High-Tech Agriculture Joint Stock Company, added that the company has also expanded exports to the Middle East market and maintained traditional markets such as the Republic of Korea and Malaysia.

Nam predicts that rice exports are anticipated to make major breakthroughs over the coming year as high export prices at the end of the crop will provide rice exporters with an extra advantage when negotiate contracts.

More importantly, high export prices will also create favourable conditions to expand the cultivation area and improve productivity moving forward.

Moreover, the rice sector is expected to enjoy bright prospects in markets such as the Philippines, China, Europe, and Bangladesh.

In particular, China's reopening is predicted to be a promising sign for rice exporters, particularly as the nation exported between 2.5 million to 3 million tonnes to the Chinese market over the previous years, Nam said, adding that the country is likely to export one million tonnes of rice to the northern neighbour thanks to their reopening.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh has recently agreed to extend its memorandum of understanding (MOU) on rice trade with the nation for an additional five years.

With the Philippines maintaining a rice import tax of 35%, there remains plenty of room to boost Vietnamese rice exports in the market as the Philippines may need to import at least three million tonnes of rice due to an ongoing shortage of rice production.