Saturday, January 03, 2015

2nd January,2015 Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

THAVER CALLS ON POLICY MAKERS TO BENEFIT FROM FALL IN OIL PRICES WISELY

Karachi, January 01, 2015 (PPI-OT): The Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME) has called upon the policy makers to benefit from the fall in oil prices wisely and take this as golden opportunity to curb inflation, reduce cost of production, promote investment and increase exports.President UNISAME Zulfikar Thaver said the prospects are very bright for 2015 and Pakistan will become competitive in many commodities but it is very important that the government reduce its own expenses and declare austerity as a very first step.
Secondly full throttle action is required to promote value addition and exports. Thirdly a strict eye on imports is necessary to discourage imports of the unnecessary.He lamented that the government is not taking steps to promote domestic industry and not protecting it as a result imports are increasing and many items which are manufactured in Pakistan are being imported in bulk and dumped in the market. The SME units are discouraged and not planning to increase production, to modernize and upgrade their products due to tough competition from imported items.The importers are under invoicing their imports and also importing goods with undeclared money. There is no check on imports as imports of all items are allowed whether they are made in the country or not due to WTO regulations the imports cannot be disallowed.
Thaver urged the policy makers to examine the imports and impose regulatory duty on imports of items manufactured in Pakistan otherwise Pakistan is fast becoming a trading economy. The country is exporting goods worth US dollars 24 billions and importing goods worth US dollars 45 billions.Fortunately overseas Pakistanis are remitting US dollars 15 billions which is saving the situation otherwise the balance of payments would be precarious. There is also foreign debts and internal debts and deficits which are increasing and increasing the burden but the government is not serious although it is a situation which could cause deep concern to the economist.
UNISAME conducted a survey and found that the new industries are not being set up due to energy crisis, poor law and order, competition from Chinese goods, lack of marketing support for exports, poor infrastructure for farm produce and poor logistics.The other draw backs are lack of finance, leasing, insurance and taxation policies. Many entrepreneurs also complained about corruption, extortion and environment. Some even mentioned the high handedness of government officials and difficulties in lodging FIR and misconduct of policemen.
One important issue raised was of lack of information and entrepreneurs complained that the related trade promotion bodies have no satisfactory information bureau to answer queries. One exporter of bananas wanted to know what is the import duty on bananas in different countries and nobody was in a position to give the correct answer and the exporter was keen to export the fruit to the different countries as he was a farmer and growing the fruit.
Description: AKINSEMOYINIt is very important that the information bureau is set up in the trade promotion body capable of providing information as information is the key requirement of any entrepreneur. It is high time the government gets into gear and takes positive bold steps to benefit from the favourable aspects of reduced oil prices and strengthen the economy before the situation takes a turn. It is expected that the oil prices will remain such for about one year and in this period the government must act diligently to benefit from the situation.

Nigeria’s yearly rice imports from Vietnam hit N84 billion


Thursday, 01 January 2015 19:05
Written by Roseline Okere

THE Federal Government’s yearly rice import bill from Vietnam has hit about $500 million (N84 billion) according to the Nigerian-Vietnam Chambers of Commerce and Industry.  Besides, Vietnam also spends about $100 million to import agricultural products such as raw cashew nuts, cassava and oil palm from Nigeria.  Indeed, Nigeria spends about N365 million yearly on the importation of 2.1 million metric tonnes of milled rice from different countries, such as India, Thailand and Vietnam.  President of the chamber, Prince Oye Akinsemoyin, who made this disclosure in an interview with The Guardian recently, said Nigeria’s imports cover a wide range of commodities, including those of Vietnam’s strengths such as rice. 
He listed Vietnam’s major exports to Nigeria to include rubber, electric and electronic products, footwear, plastics, handicraft and fine art articles and construction materials, while the country imports from Nigeria raw cashew nuts, fruits, cotton and minerals. Akinsemoyin stated: “Basically, Nigeria exports Agricultural products.

At the moment, Vietnam is the largest importer of Nigeria’s raw cashew nuts. Vietnam’s cashew import from Nigeria is about a $100 million yearly. Nigeria exports agricultural items like Cassava with which Vietnam produces starch and the raw materialsVietnam imports sea foods from Nigeria, like shrimps, fish; also oil palm, which is processed to palm oil, which goes into local production of creams and cosmetics Vietnam imports food items like coconut and also beans and fruits from Nigeria.

  Vietnam exports rice to Nigeria; Vietnam is one of Nigeria’s trading partners in rice exportation. Vietnam’s rice export to Nigeria will be about $500 million per annum. Vietnam exports garments, fabrics to Nigeria as well as shoes and fashion accessories. Many of the cosmetics companies in Vietnam are looking for distributors in Nigeria.   Vietnam exports furniture, artifacts and art work for interior décor”.   He disclosed that many companies from Vietnam are willing to invest in Nigeria.

  According to him, “the chamber is now looking at setting up institutions that will further foster the relationship between Nigeria and Vietnam; we are encouraging investors from Vietnam to make in road to Nigeria economy, companies like Viettel is willing to invest $7 billion into the Nigerian Telecommunication sector. Arrangement is already going on to avail them the opportunity to bid for the relevant spectrum to be able to operate as one of the telecom operators in the country.  “PetroVina is also interested in investing in the Exploration and Production (E&P) sub-sector of the country’s Oil and Gas sector, PetroVina is interested in the upstream and the midstream sectors. We are trying to attract investments that will be able to provide employment for Nigerians. The kind of investors that will be able to have multiplier effects on the Nigerian economy”.


Cambodia's rice export up 2 pct last year
 (GlobalPost/GlobalPost)
Cambodia's rice export up 2 pct last year
PHNOM PENH, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia exported 387,061 tons of milled rice in 2014, a 2 percent increase from 378,856 tons in a year earlier, an official report said Thursday.Cambodian rice has been sold to 57 countries and regions around the world, said the data compiled by the Secretariat of One Window Service for Rice Export.Five main buyers are France, Poland, Malaysia, China, and the Netherlands.Kim Savuth, Vice President of the Federation of Cambodian Rice Exporters, said a sluggish growth in rice export was due to fierce competitions with other countries' rice, especially Vietnam and Thailand.Cambodia is an agrarian country with some 80 percent of the population being farmers.
In 2010, the Southeast Asian country set a goal of exporting 1 million tons of milled rice by 2015. However, Prime Minister Hun Sen admitted last month that the country was unlikely to achieve the self-imposed target due to a lack of milling capacity and funding.He said the rice export figure in 2014 clearly proved that achieving the 1 million tons target in 2015 is unlikely.Copyright 2014 Xinhua News Agency.Xinhua is China's state-run news agency.All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.


Gov't grain stockpile crushing China's domestic market


Staff Reporter

2015-01-02

09:50 (GMT+8)
Harvesting at a rice field in Harbin, Heilongjiang, Sept. 2011. (File photo/Xinhua)
Description: Harvesting at a rice field in Harbin, Heilongjiang, Sept. 2011. (File photo/Xinhua)The grain inventory the Chinese government stockpiled to bolster prices and protect the livelihood of farmers is now stilling tall and idle without a modern food processing industry to consume it, reports the Chinese-language China Business News.Mu Yiankuei, owner of a major food processing firm, said that despite the good intentions, the government's practice has given rise to some grave side effects, including the disruption of the normal circulation of grains on the market and hindrance of the healthy development of the food processing industry.
Many grain processing enterprises have been forced to close down because of a lack of grain supply, one example being rice factories in northeastern China. Nearly 80% of them have folded their operations.The grain purchase has entailed a heavy financial burden on the government, which has been spending several hundreds of billions of yuan in buying up grains a year. These are on top of the costs for infrastructure, custody of the stockpiled grains and interest on funds for the purchases.
The stockpiled grains are typically kept in warehouses for one to three years before their release into the market, greatly affecting their quality. In addition, the government purchase has jacked up domestic grain prices, inducing imports or even the smuggling of low-cost grains from neighboring nations into China. In the same vein, it has distorted the domestic market. In one instance, farmers looking to make an extra buck off of higher prices in northeastern China, prices set off by official grain purchases, began selling their maize en masse from northern China. According to rough statistics, over 5 million tons of maize flowed from Hebei to Liaoning province in 2014.Mu Yiankuei urged the government to intensify its support for the development of a modern grain processing industry, thereby laying a firm foundation for grain safety and management.





Nigeria's Yearly Rice Imports From Vietnam Hit N84 Billion

By Roseline Okere

THE Federal Government's yearly rice import bill from Vietnam has hit about $500 million (N84 billion) according to the Nigerian-Vietnam Chambers of Commerce and Industry.Besides, Vietnam also spends about $100 million to import agricultural products such as raw cashew nuts, cassava and oil palm from Nigeria.Indeed, Nigeria spends about N365 million yearly on the importation of 2.1 million metric tonnes of milled rice from different countries, such as India, Thailand and Vietnam.

President of the chamber, Prince Oye Akinsemoyin, who made this disclosure in an interview with The Guardian recently, said Nigeria's imports cover a wide range of commodities, including those of Vietnam's strengths such as rice.He listed Vietnam's major exports to Nigeria to include rubber, electric and electronic products, footwear, plastics, handicraft and fine art articles and construction materials, while the country imports from Nigeria raw cashew nuts, fruits, cotton and minerals.

Akinsemoyin stated: "Basically, Nigeria exports Agricultural products. At the moment, Vietnam is the largest importer of Nigeria's raw cashew nuts. Vietnam's cashew import from Nigeria is about a $100 million yearly. Nigeria exports agricultural items like Cassava with which Vietnam produces starch and the raw materials.Vietnam imports sea foods from Nigeria, like shrimps, fish; also oil palm, which is processed to palm oil, which goes into local production of creams and cosmetics Vietnam imports food items like coconut and also beans and fruits from Nigeria.

Vietnam exports rice to Nigeria; Vietnam is one of Nigeria's trading partners in rice exportation. Vietnam's rice export to Nigeria will be about $500 million per annum. Vietnam exports garments, fabrics to Nigeria as well as shoes and fashion accessories. Many of the cosmetics companies in Vietnam are looking for distributors in Nigeria.Vietnam exports furniture, artifacts and art work for interior décor".He disclosed that many companies from Vietnam are willing to invest in Nigeria.

According to him, "the chamber is now looking at setting up institutions that will further foster the relationship between Nigeria and Vietnam; we are encouraging investors from Vietnam to make in road to Nigeria economy, companies like Viettel is willing to invest $7 billion into the Nigerian Telecommunication sector. Arrangement is already going on to avail them the opportunity to bid for the relevant spectrum to be able to operate as one of the telecom operators in the country.

"PetroVina is also interested in investing in the Exploration and Production (E&P) sub-sector of the country's Oil and Gas sector, PetroVina is interested in the upstream and the midstream sectors. We are trying to attract investments that will be able to provide employment for Nigerians. The kind of investors that will be able to have multiplier effects on the Nigerian economy".
Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- Dec 31
Wed Dec 31, 2014 7:03pm IST
 Nagpur, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Gram prices reported higher in Nagpur Agriculture Produce and
Marketing Committee (APMC) on increased marriage season demand from local millers amid thin arrival from producing belts. Freshs rise in Madhya Pradesh gram prices and enquiries from
South-based millers also pushed up prices, according to sources.

               *            *              *              *

    FOODGRAINS & PULSES
    GRAM
   * Desi gram raw zoomed up again in open market on good marriage season demand
     from local traders amid tight supply from producing regions.

     TUAR
   * Tuar gavarani recovered nominally in open market on renewed demand from local
     traders amid weak supply from producing regions.
   * Moong and udid varieties touched to a record high in open market on increased
     seasonal demand from local traders amid tight supply from producing regions. Weak
     production reports also activated stockists. 
                                                                                       
   * In Akola, Tuar - 4,700-4,900, Tuar dal - 7,100-7,400, Udid at 6,700-6,900,
     Udid Mogar (clean) - 7,500-7,700, Moong - 7,800-8,000, Moong Mogar
    (clean) 9,700-10,100, Gram - 2,500-2,700, Gram Super best bold - 3,600-3,900
     for 100 kg.
   * Wheat, rice and other commodities remained steady in open market
     in thin trading activity, according to sources.
      
 Nagpur foodgrains APMC auction/open-market prices in rupees for 100 kg

     FOODGRAINS                 Available prices     Previous close  
     Gram Auction                2,900-3,400         2,870-3,350
     Gram Pink Auction            n.a.           2,100-2,600
     Tuar Auction                n.a.                4,000-4,200
     Moong Auction                n.a.                6,200-6,400
     Udid Auction                n.a.           4,300-4,500
     Masoor Auction                n.a.              2,600-2,800
     Gram Super Best Bold            4,150-4,300        4,150-4,300
     Gram Super Best            n.a.               
     Gram Medium Best            3,900-4,000        3,900-4,000
     Gram Dal Medium            n.a.            n.a.
     Gram Mill Quality            3,000-3,100        3,000-3,100
     Desi gram Raw                3,100-3,400         3,100-3,400
     Gram Filter new            3,300-3,700        3,300-3,700
     Gram Kabuli                8,600-9,900        8,600-9,900
     Gram Pink                7,300-7,500        7,300-7,500
     Tuar Fataka Best             7,700-7,800        7,700-7,800
     Tuar Fataka Medium             7,450-7,600        7,450-7,600
     Tuar Dal Best Phod            7,000-7,200        7,000-7,200
     Tuar Dal Medium phod            6,600-6,800        6,600-6,800
     Tuar Gavarani              5,550-5,650        5,500-5,600
     Tuar Karnataka             5,800-6,000        5,800-6,000
     Tuar Black                 8,300-8,700           8,300-8,700
     Masoor dal best            7,300-7,500        7,300-7,500
     Masoor dal medium            7,000-7,200        7,000-7,200
     Masoor                    n.a.            n.a.
     Moong Mogar bold               10,500-10,800       10,300-10,600
     Moong Mogar Medium best        9,800-10,200        9,700-10,200
     Moong dal Chilka            9,500-10,000        9,200-9,800
     Moong Mill quality            n.a.            n.a.
     Moong Chamki best            8,300-9,800        8,000 -9,600
     Udid Mogar Super best (100 INR/KG)    8,200-8,500       8,000-8,200
     Udid Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG)    7,700-7,900        7,600-7,800
     Udid Dal Black (100 INR/KG)        6,000-6,200        5,800-6,000
     Batri dal (100 INR/KG)        4,300-4,500        4,300-4,500
     Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg)           2,800-3,000         2,800-3,000
     Watana Dal (100 INR/KG)        2,900-3,200        2,900-3,200
     Watana White (100 INR/KG)        2,900-3,100         2,900-3,100
     Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG)    3,850-4,450        3,850-4,450
     Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG)        1,300-1,600        1,300-1,600
     Wheat Mill quality(100 INR/KG)    1,800-1,900        1,800-1,900
     Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG)        1,200-1,400           1,200-1,400
     Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG)    2,200-2,500        2,100-2,500
     Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG)    1,950-2,200        1,950-2,200
     Lokwan Hath Binar (100 INR/KG)    n.a.            n.a.
     MP Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG)    2,800-3,200        2,800-3,200
     MP Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG)    2,300-2,500        2,300-2,500
     Wheat 147 (100 INR/KG)        1,300-1,400        1,300-1,400
     Wheat Best (100 INR/KG)        1,550-1,850        1,550-1,850    
     Rice BPT (100 INR/KG)               3,000-3,300        3,000-3,300
     Rice Parmal (100 INR/KG)        1,700-1,800        1,700-1,800
     Rice Swarna new (100 INR/KG)      2,400-2,600        2,400-2,600
     Rice HMT (100 INR/KG)               3,800-4,200        3,800-4,200
     Rice HMT Shriram (100 INR/KG)    4,500-5,300        4,400-5,300
     Rice Basmati best (100 INR/KG)    10,000-13,000        10,000-13,000
     Rice Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG)    7,000-9,600        7,000-9,600
     Rice Chinnor (100 INR/KG)        5,200-5,500        5,100-5,500
     Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG)        1,900-2,100        1,900-2,100
     Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG)        2,100-2,300        2,100-2,300

WEATHER (NAGPUR) 
Maximum temp. 28.8 degree Celsius (73.8 degree Fahrenheit), minimum temp.
15.2 degree Celsius (59.4 degree Fahrenheit)
Humidity: Highest - n.a., lowest - n.a.
Rainfall : nil
FORECAST: Partly cloudy sky. Rains or thunder-showers likely towards evening or night. Maximum
and minimum temperature would be around and 29 and 18 degree Celsius respectively.
Note: n.a.--not available
 (For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant delivery prices, but
included in market prices.)




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