Southeast Asia Information Port (www.dnyxxg.com) reported on June 30th that Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and Ministry of Industry and Trade announced that in the first half of this year, the national rice harvest area reached 3.48 million hectares, a year-on-year increase of 0.5%; the average yield was 6,710 kg per hectare, and the yield per unit area reached 23.3 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 1.6%.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development also stated that in the first half of this year, Vietnam's rice exports reached 4.65 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 10.4%; earning US$2.98 billion, an increase of 32%.
However, Vietnam's rice imports reached US$670 million in the first half of the year. This figure is projected to reach US$860 million in 2023, mainly from Cambodia and India. Some businesses indicated that although Vietnam is the world's second-largest rice exporter, it still needs to import some rice varieties to support feed production and processing.
Last week, the export price of Vietnamese 5% broken rice was US$575-580 per ton, higher than the previous week's US$570 per ton, but still US$18 lower than Thai rice prices. Merchants in Ho Chi Minh City stated that rice prices rose after the Philippines decided to lower import taxes. However, due to the current harvest season and abundant supply, rice prices are unlikely to surge.
Meanwhile, Indian rice prices fell due to decreased demand and soaring freight costs; Thai rice prices also declined due to competition from Vietnam. (End)
