Vietnamese Govt to Decide Rice Export Prices

Vietnamese exporters will have to sell their rice at the prices to be fixed by the National Rice Export Management Team from July 2008, the Saigon Liberation newspaper reported.

 

The team includes representatives from the Government Office, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the State Bank of Vietnam, and the Vietnam Food Association.

 

Currently, the team is setting the export price for Vietnamese rice at US$780 a ton.

 

It is also responsible of managing rice export activities across the country to ensure national food security and efficient export.

 

Vietnam&rsquos earnings from rice exports reached US$1.5 billion in the first half of this year, almost doubling the figure of the same period last year, though the rice export volume was up by only 6 per cent to 2.5 million tons.

 

The bumper harvests in southern and northern regions promise a total output of 37 million tons of paddy this year, up 2.7 per cent on year, therefore, the government is likely to raise rice export quota to 4.5 million tons this year, equal with the figure of last year. The domestic rice market is also expected to cool down. (Saigon Liberation)