Rice prices hit record high in 3 years

Domestic rice prices early this month have soared to record high in the past three years but farmers have no stockpile left to enjoy the whopping profits, the Saigon Times reported.
Rice traders in the Mekong Delta said prices this week had continued to soar by 350 dong a kilogram compared with last week.
They said dry IR 50404 rice fetched 7,350 dong (US$0.35) a kilogram, the highest ever since 2009.

Long-grain rice price also climbed to 7,600 dong a kilogram while the high-quality jasmine rice cost as much as 7,850 dong a kilogram in Tien Giang, Dong Thap, An Giang and Vinh Long Provinces, they added.

Analysts said domestic rice prices had surged along with the Thai government’s buying rice from local farmers at high rates since last Friday.
Tien Giang-based Hiep Loi Food Co attributed the rice price hike to the falling domestic supply against the increased demand from rice exporters.

But farmers do not benefit much from this increase since they have already sold out their stockpiles. “Had I known price would shoot up to this high, I would not have sold my rice so early,” Tran Van Hung of Dong Thap Province, said regretfully.

Other farmers in Tien Giang, Long An and Vinh Long Provinces also said traders had failed to find any supply since most farmers had emptied their stockpiles.

Nguyen Thanh Hon, a trader in Long An, said even supply from neighbouring country Cambodia had been used up. “I have managed to buy only 15 tonnes during the past three days.”

Nguyen Thi Anh, director of Tien Giang-based Tan Tai III Co, predicted that prices would continue to soar towards the end of this year thanks to pressure from Thai price hikes and the increased export demand.

“But domestic supply from An Giang and Dong Thap will drop due to the floods,” she added.
Tuoi Tre

Tags: Vietnam rice, Vietnam Rice prices