Vietnam to extend rice trade deal with Philippines
The Government has issued a resolution, approving the extension of its rice trade agreement with the Philippine Government.
The Government tasks the Foreign Ministry, in coordination with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, with finalising and sending exchange notes to the Philippines to extend the agreement and carry out relevant procedures.
The Philippines is among the biggest importers of rice from Vietnam. However, the rice shipments to the Philippines have experienced a downturn recently.
The Vietnam Food Association said domestic businesses have a chance to boost rice exports as the Philippines plans to import 293,100 tonnes of rice from Vietnam to meet food demand during the 2017 between-crop period.
Last August, Vietnam also won a bidding to provide 150,000 tonnes of rice for the Philippines.
Vietnam-Philippines bilateral trade topped US$2.92 billion in 2015. It increased by 15.3% year on year to US$1.52 billion in the first half of 2016, including US$1.08 billion of Vietnam’s exports, up 17.5%.