Rice is now the fifth largest foreign currency earner in Vietnam, representing about 20 percent of the country’s total earnings from agriculture, forest and aquatic product exports, said the General Statistic Office and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The bumper harvests in both southern and northern regions promise a total output of 37 million tonnes of paddy this year, up 1 million tonnes from last year. Therefore, the government is likely to raise this year’s rice export quota to 4.5 million tonnes, equal to last year’s figure. The domestic rice market is also expected to cool down.

Businesses have signed contracts to export 3.5 million tonnes of rice in the first nine months of this year.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to assist businesses in purchasing and exporting rice. Commercial banks have also been required to ensure capital for rice exporters.

Rice production became one of the hottest issues in the first months of this year as farmers in northern provinces faced many challenges, including serious droughts, the most severe cold spells over the past 40 years, and surging materials prices.