Vietnam’s rice export price has increased by 9.8% to $528.5 per tonne, compared to the same period last year, due to buyers stockpiling rice over supply fears. The head of the Center for Digital Applications and Agricultural Statistics under the Ministry of Agriculture, Nguyen Quoc Tuan, explained that the crisis in Ukraine has prompted buyers to import more rice to stockpile, fearing another disruption in the cereal supply chain.
Moreover, the price of Vietnamese broken rice also rose 5% from $449 per tonne in January to $457 per tonne in February. However, the Vietnam Statistical Office reported that the country exported 789,000 tonnes of grain in January and February, amounting to $417.2 million. This was an 18.8% decrease in volume and a 10.8% decrease in value compared to the same period last year.
In January, the Philippines was the largest importer of Vietnamese rice with an import volume of over 129,000 tonnes worth $64.55 million, accounting for 34.6% of Vietnam’s total exports. The trader expressed concerns about supply, citing drought affecting productivity in some countries and the situation in Ukraine as factors raising concerns about grain shortages.