Rice exports is facing difficulties

The Vietnam’s traditional key agricultural product has been facing difficulties in decrease both in volume and value.

According to the General Department of Vietnam Customs, by the end of April 2017, the country exported about 1.78 million tonnes of rice, the total turnover reached $ US 792,7 million, decreasing 10% in volume and 10.2 % in value respectively compared to the same period in 2016.

Currently, the rice exports still depend on China and some ASEAN countries such as; Philippines and Malaysia., etc.

Of which, China is the largest import market, accounting for nearly 46% of the Vietnam’s total export volume and 47.7% of the turnover.

Meanwhile, Philippines accounted for 13.3% of volume and nearly 11.4% in value and Malaysia accounted for nearly 4.7% of volume and 4.3 % in value.

Remarkably, the rice exports in the coming time will face many difficulties when the export countries such as Thailand, India and Vietnam come into harvest season.

On the other hand, according to the Trade and Industry Information Center (Ministry of Industry and Trade), Vietnam's main rice import markets are adopting policies to restrict imports such as China cut the imports in an official trade or small trade. This is very disadvantaged for our rice exports.

In addition, the dependence on a few markets, especially the largest export market as China mainly through small trade makes Vietnamese traders be always inactive and easily pressured on price, this is also a weakness in the current rice exports.

To promote the rice exports, recently, the Prime Minister assigned the ministries and sectors to synchronously implement measures to enhance the rice exports in accordance with the target and directions in 2017.

In which, the Ministry of Industry and Trade chaired and collaborated with relevant authorities to monitor and grasp the situation of the world rice trade, information about demand and passion for import markets to promptly guide and propaganda localities and traders of rice exports; closely coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to catch the situation of rice volume in each period, each season and especially in rice harvest season and promptly issue measures to sell rice and ensure the benefits for rice farmers.

One of specific measures to boost the rice exports is that the Ministry of Industry and Trade is completing a decree replacing Decree No. 109/2010/ND-CP on rice export business with many basic changes on removing barriers and facilitate rice export enterprises such as removing the conditions on scale of storage and milling facilities; regulations on price floor and centralized contracts.