Farmers urge govt to declare agri-emergency
October 4, 2019
LAHORE: The Farmers Bureau of Pakistan (FBP), a
representative platform for progressive growers, has urged the government to
declare agriculture and climate emergency in the country in order to save the
sector from bad weather that the country has experienced over the past few
days.
“Cotton, rice and corn crops have been
nearly ruined because of the erratic weather, heat wave and a lack of promotion
of new technologies in the agriculture sector,” said founding members of the
FBP. “We may witness a loss of 40% in rice and maize yields while cotton may
also face a similar fate.”
Talking to a group of journalists on
Thursday, FBP founding members Dr Zafar Hayyat, Mian Shaukat, Aamir Hayat
Bhandara and Imran Shah Khagga urged the government to make immediate
intervention to save the growers. They pointed out that maize was not a crop
for the southern region of Punjab but due to the poor performance of cotton
crop, the farmers were opting to plant rice and maize in that region.
“Seed companies should have informed the
growers earlier that varieties being marketed by them were not meant for all
regions and they should test them while keeping changing weather conditions in
mind,” they said. They were of the view that the agriculture sector could
register negative growth this year, even lower than the previous year.
The FBP founding members urged the
government to immediately improve its policies, control seed trade, introduce
such seed varieties that were resistant to climate changes and bring technology
in the sector.
Hayyat pointed out that untimely windstorms,
erratic rains and sudden heat wave had impacted the rice and maize crops.
Khagga pointed out that the formula for manufacturing pesticides, which were
being marketed in the country, was 30 to 40 years old and they did not prove
effective against pests.
He said pesticides of billions of rupees
were being imported and marketed but such insecticides had no efficacy against
pests rather they were causing illness among human beings and contaminating
water.
He was of the view that independent surveys
showed that the country might produce only 12 million bales of cotton this
season against the target of 15 million bales despite an increase in the area
under cultivation.
‘Climate change can cause 40 percent loss of major crops’
OCTOBER 4, 2019
The Farmers Bureau of Pakistan
(FBP) has urged the government to impose agriculture & climatic emergency
to save the sector from the bad patch it is witnessing at present, while they
fear that Pakistan may witness 40 percent decrease in major crops owing to
prevailing situation.
This concern was raised by FBP
representatives Dr Zafar Hayyat, Mian Shaukat, Aamir Hayat Bhandara and Imran
Shah Khagga while talking to the members of the Agriculture Journalists
Association (AJA) on Thursday at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industries.
They said that maize is not a
crop of South but due to poor performance of cotton, people opted for planting
rice and maize. They said that the companies should have told the growers that
varieties being marketed by them are not meant for their region or they should
plant it while keeping the weather conditions in mind. Dr. Zafar Hayyat said
that they had formed the platform of FBP to play their role in putting the
policy makers on right path which could steer this sector out of present marsh.
He said that untimely wind storms, erratic rains and sudden heat had caused
lodging in rice and maize crops.
Imran Shah Khagga, another
progressive grower, termed that the formula of pesticides being marketed at
present are 30-40 years old and do not have resistance power against the pests.
He said that pesticides of billions of rupees are imported and marketed for
trillion of rupees but such medicines have no efficacy against pests rather
causing illness even among the human beings coupled with the contaminated
water. He claimed that independent surveys are saying that we might have 12
million bales of cotton as against the target of 15 million bales despite
increase in area under cultivation. He said that our issue is pink bollworm and
to tackle it world had introduced such cotton seed varieties which have
resistance against this pest. He said that we have requested the National
Productivity Organisation (NPO) and other institutes concerned to ban such seed
which have no proper gene expression and cannot fight against diseases
prevailing in this region.
Farmers for declaring agri and climate emergency
Government should immediately improve
policies, control seed trade, introduce seed varieties resistant to climatic
changes
LAHORE - The Farmers Bureau of
Pakistan (FBP), a representative body of progressive growers, has urged the
government to declare agriculture and climate emergency to take the sector out
of prevailing crisis.
Pak-China Free Trade Agreement To Become Operational Shortly:
Ambassador Hashmi
Pakistan Ambassador to China Naghmana Alamgir Hashmi has said that
Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed between Pakistan and China would become
operational in a few months
BEIJING, (APP - UrduPoint /
Pakistan Point News - 4th Oct, 2019 ) :Pakistan Ambassador to China Naghmana Alamgir Hashmi has said that Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed between Pakistan and China would become operational in a few months.
"Actually the free trade agreement will hopefully be implemented shortly,
because it's still going through the internal processes of being ratified. We
hope that in the next few months, it will become operational," she said in
an exclusive interview to China Economic Net (CEN) here on Friday.
Ambassador Hashmi said, "On
our side all the procedures have been completed. On
the Chinese side, there are a few procedures which are
left. So we think it is going to be sooner rather than later. We just need to
wait a little more, because governmental procedures have to take. But I think
it will be very shortly very, very shortly." While commenting on increase
in Pakistan export to China, she said with the FTA becoming operational,
the prices will in any way go down, because the import duties will not apply then.
"Secondly, we have just now in
the process of completing the first phase of CPEC and the second phase of CPEC has now started, which is actually the
establishment of special economic zones in various parts of the country.
So with the establishment of these
special economic zones and with the increasing number of agreements and
cooperation in the agricultural sector, which is a priority both with President
Xi and with Prime Minister Imran Khan, I think this is one area where there is
huge potential of both investments, growth and then re-export of those value
added products to China," she added.
Commenting on export potential, she
there are certain products which have traditionally come to China, which are very much appreciated here.
"We export a lot of rice
to China that's called 86. It's the small glutinous
rice. Then sugar is increasingly being imported in China. And sugar is very good quality. And yarn, we
produce a lot of cotton and you have a huge textile industry. So yarn comes to China," she added.
Ambassador Hashmi said the Balochistan province is the only area in the world that produces onyx. Then a lot of gold and copper is being exported to China. Pakistan has a lot of potential both in minerals
and in gemstones but do not have that advanced technology to polish and create them. So that is
another area where Pakistan is looking for potential joint ventures.
Pakistan, she said, export a number of leather products which are
very good in quality and the area that has the most potential and again the
area that has the focus of the leadership of both countries is agricultural
products, development of farms, research in hybrid seeds, research and
cooperation in the area that you put in the ground for cultivation.
"Then there is a huge prospect
of cooperation in drip irrigation, because we are now trying to go to drip
irrigation because of the shortage of water," she added.
She said that China is one of the leading countries that have
really made very good use of drip irrigation and opined that agriculture is one area where there is a huge
potential of further cooperation and joint ventures and investments, adding,
"And then, of course, export of the materials to China and beyond China also." While dispelling the impression
about delay of operation of Sukkur-Multan morotwary, she said the actual
project itself has been completed. But along with this highway, there are
certain other things that need to be established, adding, "For example,
the barriers along the road have to be put in place. That work is
ongoing. The lights have to be put. The police force for that particular highway is being
raised. So those little things are left." Ambassador Hashmi
reiterated all China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (PEC) projects have absolute and full support of
the government of Pakistan, of the people of Pakistan, of all the political parties across the political
divide.
So there is no confusion or no
controversy on either the importance of CPEC or the importance of completing the projects
in time.
And some of the projects have been completed even before time.
"Our Prime Minister has met President Xi twice and he
has very clear and categorical terms conveyed to the Chinese leadership that commitment to CPEC and to BRI is absolute and unshakable,"
she added.
About visa policy for Chinese citizens, she said for Chinese, Pakistan has on arrival visa policy and now there is also online visa.
"One of the first countries
with which we've liberalized visa regime is China. There is so much work going on. There's so much
people to people contact. There's so much political contact," she added.
Pakistan, she said, liberalized
the visa regime for 94 countries. Pakistan is an open country. "We have nothing
to hide. We're not like the Indian occupied Kashmir, where people can't go.
You can go anywhere in Pakistan. You're very welcome." On registration of
cell phone at Pakistani airport, she said in Pakistan, a lot of people who were misusing this
particularly when there was a lot of terrorism going on. So in order to control
that, the authorities have made a policy.
Every foreigner who comes to visit Pakistan and even Pakistanis, it's not only for
foreigners, any traveler who's living abroad and is coming home, at the airport, he needs to register his phone.
"And that takes five minutes.
So if your phone is registered at the airport and you only have to do once, nobody will
stop you. But if your phone is not registered, then it becomes a problem,"
she added.
Ambassador Hashmi asked all the Chinese going to Pakistan that there are big booths at the airport where they should register phone. "So
if your phone is registered, your SIM will work. There's absolutely no
problem." To yet another question, she said that tax was import on cell phones to stop smuggling and not to
stop the communication.
"So if you have a phone that you're using, you register it,
you bring it. They know that you're going back. You're not leaving the phone
here. But if you have new phones, so in one year, one visitor can only bring
one new phone," she added.
On export of Sugar to China for next year, she said, "I think next
year also, because for our growers, exporters and manufacturers of sugar, it's
a product that we have introduced in Chinese market. Once the word goes around that this was a
successful venture, I am sure next year you'll get more and the year after you
might even get more." Regarding a chain, from Pakistan, China, South Korea, and export to European countries, she said
that Pakistan have always had very good relations
with South Korea and a very good export trade with that
country.
"So I think it's a very good
idea that you pick up one expertise from one country, another from another country, and one advantage of a third
country join together. I think this is very, very good. Our world is progressing and the three are friendly
countries, there should not be a problem," she added.
About recently held Mango festival, she said this was the third mango festival that was organized in Beijing, which was so successful.
A very large number of Chinese attended the festival to taste mango, to taste the various mango products and we hope to see Pakistani mangoes being sold in supermarkets
and markets all over China.
Ambassador Hashmi said with the
completion of CPEC and the establishment of cold chains, lot of
projects can then be transported by road and they won't have to be airlifted.
"Mangoes cannot be shipped up
to now, because it has very short shelf life and by road with a cold chain is also necessary for
fisheries and other agricultural products, so that is another area where a lot
of Chinese investors have an opportunity to do business in Pakistan, which would be mutually beneficial to the
importers and the exporters, and is a nice way of introducing good Pakistani agricultural products at reasonable
prices here in China," she added.
APP/asg Get Outlook for Android
BIR closes warehouses; rice stocks smuggled?
By Jovelyn Moya
October
4, 2019
BIR Deputy Commissioner Arnel SD
Guballa (center) and Assistant Secretary Tony Lambino of the Department of
Finance inspect imported rice from Vietnam and Myanmar during a raid on 11
warehouses in Guiguinto, Bulacan, on Thursday.
THE Bureau of Internal Revenue
(BIR) on Thursday padlocked 11 warehouses in Guiguinto, Bulacan, for various
tax violations, including non-registration and failure to pay the annual
registration fee. Authorities, meanwhile, are also checking if the rice was
smuggled into the country.
The raiding team led by officials
of the Department of Finance (DOF) and BIR said that the stalls were illegally
operated by five companies that stored at least 410,000 sacks of importedrice
from Vietnam and Myanmar.
“After the closure, we will do an
inventory, we will document them for us to determine if these are considered
smuggled rice,” Revenue Deputy Commissioner for Operations Arnel Guballa said.
The establishments owned by
Cagayan Corn Products Corp., Pacific Rim Transport and Logistics Inc., UPFC
Logistics Corp., AAI Logistics Cargo Express Inc., and JCOMP Trading and
Distribution have been under the tax agency’s watch since March.
Aside from imported rice, the
raiding team also discovered five warehouses containing corn flour, imported
soy milk, and liquid detergent products.
The revenue-collecting agency has
yet to determine the worth of all the goods, pending an inventory that was
ongoing as of press time.
“We have been monitoring these
businesses since March and in a span of seven months, we discovered sacks of
rice, corn flour, and milk; they are registered in BIR as a ‘logistics and
tracking’ company,” Guballa explained.
DOF Assistant Secretary Tony
Lambino warned that the tax-delinquent establishments in Bulacan may endanger
consumers’ health if the rice imports are proven to be smuggled. “If these rice
are smuggled, we are endangering the health of our consumers—these sacks of
rice may have skipped the sanitary measures [that are conducted] if you legally
import food,” Lambino said.
The warehouses will remain closed
until all tax deficiencies have been settled.
Does National
Insurance Requirement Mean Rough Seas for Coal Shipments?
Indonesia October 2 2019
A
recently published surveyor report (laporan surveryor) on Indonesian coal
exports noted that as of March 2019, of 1,095 coal shipments in 2019 only 9%
were insured under a national insurance company. This number is alarming for
both the Government and coal exporters in Indonesia, given that just two years
ago the Ministry of Trade issued MOT Regulation No. 82 of 2017 regarding
Provisions for the Utilization of National Maritime Transportation and
Insurance for the Export and Import of Certain Goods (Reg. 82). This regulation
has been amended several times since it was issued, most recently by MOT
Regulation No. 80 of 2018 (Reg. 82 as amended).
The
regulation was issued in an effort to create more opportunities for national
shipping companies and national insurance companies that engage in import and
export activities. Initially, Reg. 82 gave exporters and importers the choice
of using national or foreign shipping and insurance companies. However, a more
restrictive approach has since been taken, specifically for coal, crude palm
oil, rice and goods for government procurement.
Under
Reg. 82, exports of coal and crude palm oil can only be undertaken by national
shipping companies and can only be insured with national insurance. Similar
obligations have been imposed for imports of rice and government procurements.
Exporters
and importers can be exempted from the obligation to use national shipping
companies when such companies are limited or unavailable. There was a similar
exemption for the use of national insurance, but under Reg. 82 as amended, exporters
and importers, without exception, must now use national insurance. The
provision previously granting exporters and importers the possibility of
utilizing foreign insurance has been removed.
It
is worth noting that failure to satisfy the requirement to utilize national
insurance for the export and import of coal, crude palm oil, rice and goods for
government procurement has potentially grave implications for exporters and
importers. According to Reg. 82 as amended, incompliant exporters and importers
may be subject to administrative sanction in the form of the suspension or
revocation of their license.
The
obligation to use national maritime transportation is scheduled to come into
force starting May 1, 2020, while the obligation to use national insurance came
into force on February 1, 2019, but was postponed to June 1, 2019 through
Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Circular Letter No. 123/DAGLU/SD/2019.
Understanding
that the obligation to use national insurance is already binding, this article only
addresses the practical issues for coal supply and transportation contracts in
Indonesia in view of this national insurance obligation.
There
are two practical issues that may arise, namely (i) whether existing foreign
insurance under coal supply and transportation contracts that existed prior to
the implementation of this national insurance requirement must be switched to
national insurance, and (ii) whether the holder of the insurance policy should
be the exporter or the foreign purchaser of the coal.
Existing
Foreign Insurance
We
note that none of the provisions within these regulations incorporate any
grandfathering exception for pre-existing coal supply and transportation
contracts. This means the national insurance obligation vested under Reg. 82 as
amended is enforceable even for contracts that existed before the enactment of
the regulation. Our recent non-formal discussions with the MOT support this
understanding.
This
raises practical issues in adjusting pre-existing contracts in Indonesia that were
mostly concluded by way of adopting the International Commercial Terms
(Incoterms). One of the key Incoterms often adopted by companies engaging in
coal supply and transportation activities is the Free on Board (FOB) term. In
essence, the FOB term prescribes that the buyer will be responsible for
costs/liabilities once goods are shipped. This includes the costs of insuring
the goods. It is likely that buyers outside Indonesia, using the FOB term, will
obtain insurance from foreign insurance companies rather than from national
insurance companies in Indonesia.
Our
reading of Reg. 82 as amended and its implementing guidelines, i.e., DGFT
Regulation No. 02/DAGLU/PER/1/2019 regarding Technical Guidance for the
Implementation of the Obligation to Use a National Insurance Company for the
Export and Import of Certain Goods (Reg. 02), is that the holder of existing
insurance from a foreign insurance company for the shipment of coal will still
have to procure insurance from a national insurance company. We received a
non-formal confirmation from an MOT official on this.
The
national insurance companies referred to under Reg. 82 as amended and Reg. 02
need not be wholly Indonesian owned, whether directly or indirectly. Insurance
from national insurance companies can be used for the shipment of coal if it
qualifies for registration with the MOT. This means it is obtained from a
general or sharia insurance company established under the laws of Indonesia and
licensed by the Financial Services Authority (Otoritas Jasa Keuangan or OJK).
It is therefore possible for the national insurance company to be a subsidiary
or affiliate of an international insurance company.
Holder
of Insurance Policy
In
practice, under the FOB term, the buyer of the coal procures insurance from an
insurance company and acts as the policyholder and the insured. This is in
contrast with the requirement under Reg. 82 as amended that the exporter is the
party that procures the insurance from a national insurance company.
According
to our reading of Reg. 82 as amended and Reg. 02, the holder of the insurance
policy need not necessarily be the coal exporter; it depends on the terms
adopted under the contracts. This conclusion was reached upon reviewing Reg.
02, which requires exporters to “submit” an application for an insurance policy
to a national insurance company. Within this context, a plain reading of the
word “submit” indicates that the exporter need not be the one holding the
national insurance, and merely is required to “submit” the application for the
national insurance, regardless of which party holds it. Our recent non-formal
discussions with the MOT support this interpretation.
Further,
an MOT official asserted that Reg. 02, which requires that an insurance
application submission include (a) a Taxpayer Identity Number (Nomor Pokok
Wajib Pajak or NPWP), (b) the name of the insured, (c) the address of the
insured and (d) the type of goods, does not limit the holder of the insurance
policy. While we understand that only an Indonesian national or legal entity
will have an NPWP, the requirement set out under Reg. 02 may simply be
disregarded for the simple reason that the requirement is not applicable.
The devil in the rice detail
Philippine Daily Inquirer / 05:28 AM October 04,
2019
Though rice tariffication is much better than the
quantitative restrictions implemented by the government-led import monopoly,
the devil is in the 35-percent level.
Two years ago, we wrote about how the tariff level should
be fair—neither siding with the importers nor the local producers. We said this
would be good for consumers and challenge local producers, who would have to be
efficient or else perish in the process.
At that time, we quoted a Philippine Rice Research
Institute (PhilRice) study that suggested 70 percent as the tariff level that
would level the playing field for both imported and domestic rice. A 35-percent
level would be preferable.
But to be fair, the government should first give the
farmers the necessary support measures to enable them to compete. A suggested
road map with details such as the areas where other crops could be diverted and
the budget needed was never implemented.
The government was correct in implementing the 35-percent
tariff because it was a commitment to the World Trade Organization. But what
the government missed was the safeguards provided by the WTO itself and our
very own Republic Act 8800 or Safeguard Measures Act.
On Aug. 13, the Alyansa Agrikultura officially asked for
safeguard measures because imports had already ballooned to 2.4 million tons,
or twice our annual import requirement.
We expect imports to have reached 3 million tons in
September. And more should be coming in because a tariff level enough to
safeguard our own produce has been delayed.
A rice disaster is already happening. Farm-gate prices of
wet palay now average P11.62 per kilo in Region II, P12.41 in Region III and
P12 in Region VI.
Since the average production cost is P12, we will see
huge losses on a large scale and the demise of the rice industry unless the
safeguard is implemented soon.
In my doctoral dissertation on the successful transfer of
a system to a real world setting, I said there was a need for preparation.
Critical elements must be present, such as the provision
of necessary facilities, the required infrastructure and a supportive business
and socioeconomic environment.
These elements are not present for the success of the
35-percent tariff.
To say that farmers can immediately shift from rice to
other crops without the necessary support mechanisms is foolhardy,
irresponsible and dangerous.
Agriculture Secretary William Dar should be commended for
taking the bold step of initiating the safeguard measure investigations weeks
ago, despite strong opposition that has delayed the necessary actions.
Food security, instead of food self-sufficiency, is our
objective. But we must survive this crisis to get there.
In the late 1990s, our agriculture and farmers suffered
severely when we implemented the WTO-suggested rapid tariff reduction without
the WTO-approved safeguard measures.
This could happen again.
A well-known personality in another field said: “You
cannot make the same mistake twice. The second time you make it, it is
not a mistake anymore. It’s a choice. Enough.”
If the safeguards are not implemented immediately, the
rice farmers may well behave in undesirable ways and say, “Enough.”
We must therefore attend to this rice detail before
anything unfortunate occurs.
Waning demand prompts Indian, Thai exporters to lower
prices
By
Karthika Suresh Namboothiri
ReutersOctober
3, 2019
FILE
PHOTO: A Thai farmer holds rice in his hand in Khon Kaen province
By
Karthika Suresh Namboothiri
BENGALURU
(Reuters) - Rice export rates in Asian hubs fell this week as weak demand and
currency fluctuations prompted sellers in India and Thailand to cut prices,
while expectations of lower interest from the Philippines weighed on the
Vietnamese market.
Thailand's
benchmark 5% broken rice prices were quoted slightly lower at $396-$417 a
tonne versus last week's $400-$420.
"Exporters
have to lower prices to lure buyers," a Bangkok-based rice trader said
adding: "I've not been able to sell any rice for two months now."
Thai
exporters have struggled since the start of the year as the baht, which has
been Asia's best performing currency this year, has kept Thai prices higher
than those of competitors India and Vietnam.
"There
could be a possible deal for parboiled rice from African markets ahead of
Christmas, and perhaps some demand from China and other Asian markets for
jasmine rice towards the end of the year," another Bangkok-based trader
said
"But
as of now there is simply no major demand due to our high prices."
Prices
of top exporter India's 5% broken parboiled variety also extended losses,
dipping to around $369-$373 per tonne from $371-$375 a week ago on a weak rupee
and subdued demand.
"Demand
is weak. Traders are waiting for the new season crop," said an exporter
based at Kakinada in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.
Indian
rice exports in April-July plunged 26.5% from a year ago to 3.14 million
tonnes, a government body said last month, on subdued demand for non-basmati rice
from Africa.
In
Vietnam, rates for 5% broken rice were quoted at $330-$340 a tonne, free on
board, compared with $335 a week earlier. Prices had plunged to a near 12-year
low of about $325 in the week to Sept. 19.
"We
are concerned that exports to Philippines will decline as it is seeking to
limit rice imports to protect local farmers," a trader based in Ho Chi
Minh City said.
Philippines,
one of the world's biggest rice importers, may consider imposing a safeguard
duty on rice to ease the pain of local farmers hurting from a surge in imports.
Vietnam's
rice shipments in the first nine months of 2019 likely rose 4.5% to 5.1 million
tonnes, but export revenue was expected to drop 9.7% in the same period.
Elsewhere,
a heavy spell of retreating monsoon rains has submerged vast swathe of farmland
in low-lying Bangladesh, still recovering from previous
floods. Floods in July washed away crops that would have
yielded nearly 400,000 tonnes of rice, agriculture ministry estimates showed.
"If
the water recedes soon, it won't have much impact on paddy crops," an
agriculture ministry official said.
(Reporting by Khanh Vu in Hanoi,
Panu Wongcha-um in Bangkok, Ruma Paul in Dhaka and Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai;
editing by Arpan Varghese and David Evans)
Cambodia's rice export to China up 44 pct in 9 months
Source:
Xinhua| 2019-10-03 19:25:03|Editor: Xiang Bo
PHNOM
PENH, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia had exported 157,793 tons of milled rice to
China during the first nine months of 2019, up 44 percent over the same period
last year, said an official report on Thursday.
China
remained the top buyer of Cambodian rice during the January-September period
this year, said the report of the Secretariat of One Window Service for Rice
Export.
The
export to China accounted for 39.6 percent of the country's total rice export,
it said.
Meanwhile,
the Southeast Asian nation shipped 135,475 tons of rice to the European market,
down 30 percent, said the report, adding that the European Union (EU)'s market
share for Cambodian rice had declined to 34 percent from 49.7 percent.
The
slump in the export to the European market came after the EU imposed earlier
this year duties for three years on rice importing from Cambodia in a bid to
curb a surge in rice imports from the country and to protect European
producers.
According
to the report, Cambodia exported a total of 398,586 tons of rice to 53
countries and regions across the globe during the first nine months of this
year, up 2.3 percent over the same period last year.
ASIA RICE-WANING DEMAND
PROMPTS INDIAN, THAI EXPORTERS TO LOWER PRICES
10/3/2019
* Thai rates more expensive than
competitors
* India prices ease to $369-$373
per tonne from $371-$375
* Philippines mulls safeguard duty
on rice imports
* Fresh floods submerge farm land
in Bangladesh
By Karthika Suresh Namboothiri
BENGALURU, Oct 3 (Reuters) - Rice
export rates in Asian hubs fell this week as weak demand and currency
fluctuations prompted sellers in India and Thailand to cut prices, while
expectations of lower interest from the Philippines weighed on the Vietnamese
market.
Thailand's benchmark 5% broken rice
<RI-THBKN5-P1> prices were quoted slightly lower at $396-$417 a tonne
versus last week's $400-$420.
"Exporters have to lower
prices to lure buyers," a Bangkok-based rice trader said adding:
"I've not been able to sell any rice for two months now."
Thai exporters have struggled since
the start of the year as the baht, which has been Asia's best performing
currency this year, has kept Thai prices higher than those of competitors India
and Vietnam.
"There could be a possible
deal for parboiled rice from African markets ahead of Christmas, and perhaps
some demand from China and other Asian markets for jasmine rice towards the end
of the year," another Bangkok-based trader said
"But as of now there is simply
no major demand due to our high prices."
Prices of top exporter India's 5%
broken parboiled variety <RI-INBKN5-P1> also extended losses, dipping to
around $369-$373 per tonne from $371-$375 a week ago on a weak rupee and
subdued demand.
"Demand is weak. Traders are
waiting for the new season crop," said an exporter based at Kakinada in
the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.
Indian rice exports in April-July
plunged 26.5% from a year ago to 3.14 million tonnes, a government body said
last month, on subdued demand for non-basmati rice from Africa.
In Vietnam, rates for 5% broken
rice <RI-VNBKN5-P1> were quoted at $330-$340 a tonne, free on board,
compared with $335 a week earlier. Prices had plunged to a near 12-year low of
about $325 in the week to Sept. 19.
"We are concerned that exports
to Philippines will decline as it is seeking to limit rice imports to protect
local farmers," a trader based in Ho Chi Minh City said.
Philippines, one of the world's
biggest rice importers, may consider imposing a safeguard duty on rice to ease
the pain of local farmers hurting from a surge in imports.
Vietnam's rice shipments in the
first nine months of 2019 likely rose 4.5% to 5.1 million tonnes, but export
revenue was expected to drop 9.7% in the same period.
Elsewhere, a heavy spell of
retreating monsoon rains has submerged vast swathe of farmland in low-lying
Bangladesh, still recovering from previous floods.
Floods in July washed away crops
that would have yielded nearly 400,000 tonnes of rice, agriculture ministry
estimates showed.
"If the water recedes soon, it
won't have much impact on paddy crops," an agriculture ministry official
said. (Reporting by Khanh Vu in Hanoi, Panu Wongcha-um in Bangkok, Ruma Paul in
Dhaka and Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai; editing by Arpan Varghese and David Evans)
RPT-ASIA RICE-WANING DEMAND
PROMPTS INDIAN, THAI EXPORTERS TO LOWER PRICES
10/3/2019
(Repeats with no changes)
* Thai rates more expensive than
competitors
* India prices ease to $369-$373
per tonne from $371-$375
* Philippines mulls safeguard duty
on rice imports
* Fresh floods submerge farmland in
Bangladesh
By Karthika Suresh Namboothiri
BENGALURU, Oct 3 (Reuters) - Rice
export rates in Asian hubs fell this week as weak demand and currency
fluctuations prompted sellers in India and Thailand to cut prices, while
expectations of lower interest from the Philippines weighed on the Vietnamese
market.
Thailand's benchmark 5% broken rice
<RI-THBKN5-P1> prices were quoted slightly lower at $396-$417 a tonne
versus last week's $400-$420.
"Exporters have to lower
prices to lure buyers," a Bangkok-based rice trader said adding:
"I've not been able to sell any rice for two months now."
Thai exporters have struggled since
the start of the year as the baht, which has been Asia's best performing
currency this year, has kept Thai prices higher than those of competitors India
and Vietnam.
"There could be a possible
deal for parboiled rice from African markets ahead of Christmas, and perhaps
some demand from China and other Asian markets for jasmine rice towards the end
of the year," another Bangkok-based trader said
"But as of now there is simply
no major demand due to our high prices."
Prices of top exporter India's 5%
broken parboiled variety <RI-INBKN5-P1> also extended losses, dipping to
around $369-$373 per tonne from $371-$375 a week ago on a weak rupee and
subdued demand.
"Demand is weak. Traders are
waiting for the new season crop," said an exporter based at Kakinada in
the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.
Indian rice exports in April-July
plunged 26.5% from a year ago to 3.14 million tonnes, a government body said
last month, on subdued demand for non-basmati rice from Africa.
In Vietnam, rates for 5% broken
rice <RI-VNBKN5-P1> were quoted at $330-$340 a tonne, free on board,
compared with $335 a week earlier. Prices had plunged to a near 12-year low of
about $325 in the week to Sept. 19.
"We are concerned that exports
to Philippines will decline as it is seeking to limit rice imports to protect
local farmers," a trader based in Ho Chi Minh City said.
Philippines, one of the world's
biggest rice importers, may consider imposing a safeguard duty on rice to ease
the pain of local farmers hurting from a surge in imports.
Vietnam's rice shipments in the
first nine months of 2019 likely rose 4.5% to 5.1 million tonnes, but export
revenue was expected to drop 9.7% in the same period.
Elsewhere, a heavy spell of
retreating monsoon rains has submerged vast swathe of farmland in low-lying Bangladesh,
still recovering from previous floods.
Floods in July washed away crops
that would have yielded nearly 400,000 tonnes of rice, agriculture ministry
estimates showed.
"If the water recedes soon, it
won't have much impact on paddy crops," an agriculture ministry official
said. (Reporting by Khanh Vu in Hanoi, Panu Wongcha-um in Bangkok, Ruma Paul in
Dhaka and Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai; editing by Arpan Varghese and David Evans)
