VIET RICE PRICE GOES UP
TO $419 PER METRIC TON
By Manny Piñol
The price of Vietnam rice for export classified as 5% broken has increased by 21.45% from last year’s $345 per metric ton to $419 according to the latest reports on rice prices world wide.
At an exchange rate of P54 to $1 and a tariff of 35%, the landed cost of every kilo of Vietnam rice with a tariff of 35% and additional logistical expenses is about P34.
When sold in the market, this could be between P40 to P42 per kilo which is about the same price as locally produced rice.
Those who are up in arms over the high price of rice in Philippine markets now should also know that in Thailand, which is one of our sources of imported rice, commercial rice is sold for Baht45 per kilo or about P73 in the retail market.
In Kuala Lumpur, the price of rice per kilo is RM5.93 according to the website Expatistan. When converted to Philippine Peso that would be about P77 per kilo.
in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, the price of rice per kilo is about P100 converted to Philippine money.
These prices indicate that there is really an uptrend in the prices of rice in the world market today and the proposal to rely on importation for our domestic rice supply could lead to a disaster in the future.
As the population of both rice exporting and rice importing countries continue to grow, the demand for rice will also increase.
There will come a time when Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan and India will no longer be able to export the same volume of rice as they do today.
Which brings us to the argument whichI have always used in fighting off the proposal of some of our economic managers that we just rely on imports for the supply of our domestic rice consumption.
We only have to reckon with the rice crisis in ZAMBASULTA (Zamboanga, Basilan, Sulu, Tawitawi) to understand that total dependence on imported rice could lead to a disaster when there the supply is cut off suddenly.
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