Rice prices to stay high until 2025: official

World rice prices in general and that of Vietnam in particular will continue to maintain high at least until 2025, said agriculture ministry official Nguyen Nhu Cuong.

Cuong, director of the ministry’s department of crop production, was speaking Friday at a press conference under the auspices of the Vietnam International Rice Festival 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City.

According to agriculture ministry data, the volume and value of rice exports in the first 11 months of 2023 reached 7.75 million tons and $4.41 billion, a year-on-year rise of 16.2% in volume and 36.3%, respectively.

The average export rice price in the first 11 months of 2023 is estimated at $568 per ton, up 17.3% year-on-year.

Data compiled by the Vietnam Food Association for trading sessions on November 21 and 22 show that export rice prices sometimes increased by up to $10 per ton compared to early November.

After reaching a peak of $663 per ton on November 21, the price of Vietnam's 5% broken rice decreased by $5 per ton on November 22 to $658 per ton. This price was still $68 and $75 per ton higher than similar products from Thailand and Pakistan, respectively.

"Vietnamese businesses need to clearly understand fluctuations in export markets to better manage orders and choose the right time to sign a rice export contract," Cuong said.

The trade ministry has forecast that Vietnam will export about 8 million tons of rice this year for a turnover of about $4.5 billion, the highest ever in terms of quantity and value.

Cuong noted that Vietnamese rice varieties ST24, ST25, Loc Troi 28, Nang Hoa 9, Nep A Sao, and TBR39-1 had collectively won first prize at the World's Best Rice 2023 contest organized by U.S.-based The Rice Trader in the Philippines from November 28-30.

Cuong said that the award reflected the successful reorganization of Vietnam’s rice industry.

The World's Best Rice Contest is an annual international event first organized by The Rice Trader in 2009 with the goal of identifying directions and trends for the rice market.

However, Vietnam cannot rest on its laurels because “the leading rice markets that compete directly with us are India and Thailand, who are continuously developing both quality and quantity. Therefore, the Vietnamese government, businesses and farmers must cooperate more strongly in the coming time," Cuong added.