29th july,2014 daily global rice e newsletter by riceplus magazine

29th July, 2014

Daily Global Rice E-Newsleter by Riceplus Magazine NFA mulls 500,000-MT add’l rice imports

By Czeriza Valencia (The Philippine Star) | Updated July 30, 2014 - 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines - The Aquino government intends to increase imports of cheap rice to continuously drive down prices, but would also continue programs to strengthen the production capability of farmers, Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization Francis Pangilinan said late Monday.Pangilinan confirmed President Aquino‘s pronouncement during his fifth state of the nation address of a standby authority for the National Food Administration for the importation of an additional 500,000 metric tons (MT) of rice for this year if needed.

If exercised, the rice importation allowed by the standby authority would be made on top of the 800,000 MT imported early this year and the 500,000 MT programmed for open bidding next month.Pangilinan said the authority for additional importation – which was taken up during the last NFA council meeting held on July 22 – is valid for this year only.―The standby authority covers up to 500,000 MT but it may or may not be exercised. Assuming it is exercised, it may be less than the ceiling of 500,000 MT,‖ Pangilinan said.The additional rice importation may be carried out depending on supply conditions as affected by typhoons, the expected occurrence of a dry spell later this year, and the production level in the fourth quarter.

Pangilinan assured, though, that the government is not abandoning its goal to attain self-sufficiency in rice and other food staples.―The decision to import is to address the current need to ensure steady supply and is not connected with our desire to attain self sufficiency. That goal will continue,‖ he said.President Aquino, in his State of the Nation address (SONA) Monday, acknowledged the prevalence of ―greedy rice hoarders‖ who stockpile supplies for release to the market when prices are high.―We will not let this pass. Perhaps they think they are being clever, but the govenrment‘s plan of action will prove the opposite. Our immediate solution: import more rice, supply it to the markets, reduce the prices and keep them at a reasonable level, and ultimately, drive those who took advantage of the Filipino people into financial ruin,‖ said Aquino.This move is expected to force rice hoaders to immediately release their stockpile.―To these hoarders, if a showdown is what you want, by all means, take on the government.

Just remember: it only take six months before the stock you have hoarded in your warehouses begins to rot.

When we flood the market with this imported rice, you will surely go bust,‖ said Aquino.The President said government employees suspected of collaborating with unscrupulous traders are now being investigated for the filing of appropriate charges.Aquino said that as the government cracks down on unscrupulous rice trading,

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programs for increasing the competitiveness of the agriculture sector would continue to be implemented.―While we are in the pursuit of those abusive few, we have also continued to implement projects to uplift Filipinos in the sector of agriculture. We are ensuring that rice farming remains a viable and attractive livelihood. After all, we know that our farmers are advancing in age, which is why it will help our pursuit of food security to encourage the youth to enter this kind of work,‖ the President said.The Department of Agriculture‘s Food Staple Sufficiency Program (FSSP) is the Aquino administration‘s banner food security program to attain sufficiency in rice and major staples like white corn, root crops and plantains.The FSSP entails satisfying the regular domestic consumption requirement as well as the buffer stocking requirement for food staples.The government is rushing to integrate farmers into the value chain as the free trade regime within Southeast Asia is implemented by 2015. Farmers are thus being groomed as entrepreneurs who can engage in food processing and marketing of their produce.

As China’s demand for rice soars, exporters in south fear they will lose stock VietNamNet Bridge – More merchants from the north are buying rice from southern provinces as China’s demand for rice increases.

The rice price has increased to VND7,000 per kilo from VND6,700 per kilo last week,‖ one exporter said, explaining that the price had been escalating as more and more merchants were looking to buy rice.―Rice exporters fear that if the situation lasts for a long time, they may not be able to collect enough rice to fulfill their export contracts,‖ he said.An Giang province, Thot Not District, in Can Tho City and Lap Vo District in Dong Thap provinces, has the most bustling rice markets in the south.Dozens of ships reportedly dock at the Hau River section near the My Thoi Port in An Giang province, waiting to get rice deliveries.

The rice will be shipped to the north, from which it will go across the border gate to China.TVT, the owner of a rice husking workshop in Thot Not district, said the rice trade seems to be ―abnormal‖ this year.―The summerautumn crop has just begun. The supply remains abundant. However, merchants are still trying to collect rice in a hurry,‖ he noted.―Merchants from northern provinces and Chinese come to our stocks to buy rice. They buy as much as we can provide, and at high prices. Meanwhile, they do not care much about the quality, the rice variety and humidity,‖ T noted. ―All the husking workshops in the locality are running at full capacity, but merchants still have to wait for deliveries,‖ he added.Le Van Liet, a Vietnamese merchant in Thoi Lai district of Can Tho City, who specializes in collecting rice from farmers for export companies, who export rice under official contracts, admitted that the Chinese were willing to pay higher prices and set lower requirements.―They (Chinese merchants and Vietnamese merchants from the north) pay VND11,000 for every kilo of five percent broken rice. Meanwhile, the average market price is just VND9,500 per kilo,‖ Liet said.As such, export companies now have to compete with northern merchants in collecting rice for export.

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The owner of a big rice trade enterprise in Lap Vo district of Dong Thap province said the companies exporting rice through official channels are worried because rice material prices keep increasing day by day.―The rice price has increased to VND7,000 per kilo from VND6,700 per kilo last week,‖ he said, explaining that the price has been escalating as more and more merchants seek to purchase rice.―Rice exporters fear that if the situation lasts for a long time, they may not be able to collect enough rice to fulfill the signed export contracts,‖ he said.

Vietnam‘s rice is exported either through unofficial channels to China (rice is carried across the border gate to be sold directly to Chinese) and through official channels under official contracts.According to Vo Tong Xuan, the leading rice expert, the high demand from China has pushed the rice price up and brought higher profits to farmers. However, he warned that it is risky to do trade with Chinese.―They (Chinese) live from hand to mouth.

Therefore, there always exist high risk in payment when doing business with them,‖ he said.

DNSG Tags:rice price,rice export,rice exporters,

Businesses push export rice price up in peak time Several businesses have rushed to buy rice for export contracts amid price increase in the Mekong Delta where the summer autumn crop has entered peak harvest time.Traders paid VND5,300 a kilogram of fresh rice, which fetched only VND4,300-4,500 a month ago, said farmer Tran Van Het from Tam Binh District, Vinh Long Province.Businesses are rushing to buy rice partly for export contracts that they had signed, according to a local business.Vietnam has exported over 3.34 million ton rice worth US$1.5 billion since early this year, reported the Vietnam Food Association (VFA).Several companies did not stock up rice when the prices were low two months ago and expected to further decline. Earlier, they signed contracts to export to the Philippines at only US$370 per ton.Domestic price increase has pushed export price up to US$385-390 per ton, which might cause them US$15-20 in loss a ton now.Rice price have been up by VND300-500 per kilogram compared to that two months ago. Highest increase was on long grain variety which price has hiked VND700 per kilogram, according to VFA.The long grain rice has fallen into a scarcity over the last one month because last year reserves have run

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out, according to businesses in the delta.Another reason for the scarcity is increasing demand for export contracts to the Philippines, Malaysia, Africa and China, they said.

Director of an export company said that farmers have expanded cultivation area of fragrant rice shrinking long grain rice area.The rice price increases but it does not mean that farmers have profit because most of them sold rice at low prices in the winter spring crop which is the main crop every year.The prices were not high in the beginning of the summer autumn crop. Rice production has completed two thirds this year.Experts said that Vietnam might export 7 ton rice this year, far higher than VFA‘s forecast of 6.5 million tons and the prices will continue moving up in the next couple of days.

By Cao Phong – Translated by Hai Mien Image 1:The Mekong Delta is amid harvest time of the summer autumn rice crop (Photo: SGGP) Image 2:Farmers do not sell harvested rice hoping for further price increase (Photo: SGGP)

USINESS IN BRIEF 29/7 Philippines is Vietnam’s second largest rice importer The Philippines is now the second largest importer of Vietnamese rice, accounting for 21.03% of the nation‘s rice exports during the first six months of the year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) reports.Vietnam shipped a total of 687.150 tonnes of rice to the Philippines valued at US$309.982 during the six month period, up 134.1% in volume and 135.9% in value compared to the same period last year.

China is still the main market for Vietnamese rice comprising 39.11% of the nation‘s export market share during the first halfof 2014.The average price of rice for the six months hovered around US$452 per tonne, a year-on-year of 2.4%.Total rice exports for the first seven months of 2014 are estimated at 3.86 million tonnes worth US$1.75 billion, down 7.9% in volume and 4.8% in value over the same period last year.

Experts expect 6.27% economic growth rate in second half Vietnam‘s economic growth must reach 6.27% in the second half of the year to fulfill growth target of 5.8% for the whole year, said economists at a recent seminar discussing the economic situation in the first half and new challenges.― There should be uniform solutions to reach the set target‖ they said.In the first half of the year, GDP growth rate increased 5.18% against the same period last year with a low inflation rate and trade surplus reaching US$1.3 billion. These figures have shown positive signs of economic recovery, which will open up opportunities to fulfill macro-economic targets as scheduled.Most notably, the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) remained high in the past six months, which shows that businesses are regaining their motivation thanks to improved production conditions.However, local businesses are facing difficulties in production activities. In addition, the low demand for business loans to expand operations has reduced these businesses‘ competitive capacity.

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Talk sheds light on Vietnam’s development Young researchers from the Argentine Council for International Relations and the International Research Network in Argentina gathered in Buenos Aires on July 24 for a seminar highlighting Vietnam as an emerging nation on the right track of development.

Vietnamese ambassador to Argentina Nguyen Dinh Thao introduced Vietnam‘s outstanding renewal achievements, which have elevated the country‘s regional and international status.He said that in the context of Vietnam‘s deeper integration into the global economy, Vietnam-Argentina relations have grown considerably with bilateral trade exchange reaching a record of US$1.6 billion in 2013.According to Argentina‘s statistics, in the first five months of the year, two-way trade turnover rose 45% to nearly US$735.5 million.

Vietnam is seen as Argentina‘s leading partner in the Southeast Asian region.At the meeting, ambassador Thao also rebuked China‘s illegal placement of oil rig Haiyang Shiyou – 981 in Vietnam‘s exclusive economic zone which has violated the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC).Participants expressed undaunted support for Vietnam‘s political status and its stance of settling disputes in East Sea through peaceful solutions in accordance with international law.

Jan-Jul agricultural exports rise 11.8% Agro-forestry-fishery exports for the first seven months of the year jumped 11.8% year-on-year to US$17.43 billion, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).Major agricultural product exports (rice, coffee, rubber, cashew nut, tea, pepper, wood and wood products) hit US$8.31 billion during the seven month period, up 5.9% against last year‘s same period.Seafood exports surged 24.5% on-year to US$4.2 billion, along with forestry products up 13.2% to US$3.52 billion.

Vietnam, Japan establish supporting industry forum The Ho Chi Minh City Export Processing and Industrial Zones Authority (HEPZA) and the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) on July 25 announced the establishment of the Vietnam-Japan Supporting Industry Forum (VIETPANSIF).JETRO Ho Chi Minh City office director Hirotaka Yasuzumi said local suppliers can meet 32.2% of the demand of Japanese-invested enterprises in Vietnam, which is very low compared to other regional countries such as Thailand and Indonesia.Therefore, the VIETPANSIF will work to connect enterprises and make policy recommendations relating to the supporting industry, he said, adding that the forum‘s executive board plans to organize an event every quarter of the year to this purpose.According to HEPZA Director Vu Van Hoa, the forum‘s establishment aims at facilitating cooperation and mutual assistance between government agencies in charge of support the business circles of both countries towards promoting the development of the supporting industry in Vietnam in particular and the Vietnam-Japan economic ties in general.

State budget spending in 2012 exceeds estimates by 8.3 percent

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The State Audit of Vietnam (SAV) on July 25 announced the result of its 2013 report, which shows that state budget spending in 2012 exceeded estimates by 8.3 percent, or VND2.07 trillion (US$97.3 million).Meanwhile, budget revenues were 1.9 percent higher than the set target.The report also showed a decrease of over VND1.6 trillion in public debts, compared with the figure in a Finance Ministry report.The audit of financial reports of the State Bank of Vietnam, the Vietnam Development Bank, and three commercial banks of Vietcombank, Vietinbank and Agribank showed they all registered profits in business activities.However, bad debts in the banking sector remained high. According to reports of 125 credit institutions, as of December 31, 2012, the average rate stood at 4.08 percent.While auditing, the SAV also discovered wrongdoings in collecting student fees at many universities.

Vietnam encourages Japanese investment The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MoPI) has pledged to create favourable conditions for Japanese businesses, including those from Kanagawa prefecture, to operate efficiently in Vietnam.

MoPI Deputy Minister Nguyen Van Trung made the commitment at a Vietnam-Kanagawa investment seminar in Hanoi on July 25. ―I do believe that cooperation with Kanagawa and its businesses will bring more benefits for Vietnam,‖ Trung told the seminar which was also attended by Governor Kuroiwa Yuji of the Japanese prefecture.

He revealed the MoPi will support Kanagawa‘s businesses in investing in health care, education-training, as well as in recruiting Vietnamese trainees to work in the prefecture.

The ministry will prioritise technology investment in Vietnam to create products of highly added value, he said.

Yuji echoed Trung‘s view, saying about 40 businesses from Kanagawa are operating in Vietnam, and boosting cooperation with Vietnam will facilitate their operations in the country.

In 2013 Kanagawa‘s GDP reached US$307.6 billion, accounting for 5.63% of the country‘s total. The prefecture houses many leading Japanese businesses operating in electronics, mechanical engineering, information technology, and biological technology.

Vietnam had a high demand for these areas in line with a cooperation strategy between Vietnam and Japan till 2020.

At the seminar, Trung and Yuji signed a memorandum of understanding on bilateral cooperation.

DOJI celebrates its 20th anniversary DOJI Gold & Gems Group Joint Stock Company recently celebrated its 20th anniversary and was presented the second class Labour Order for the company‘s contributions to the homeland.

Addressing the ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc hailed the staff‘s great efforts and their contributions to economic growth and job generation.

Phuc asked the company to focus on applying science and technology into production to create high quality products which can compete in both the domestic and international marketplaces in the coming time.

He also urged the company to boost exports of its unique jewelries, generate more jobs and pay special attention to social welfare activities.

Established in 1994, DOJI has developed strongly with a famous jewelry trademark in Vietnam. It has set up a system to sell gold bars in several provinces and cities nationwide and win the consumers‘ trust.

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Last year, the company grossed revenue of VND35,000 billion and expects to fetch VND40,000 billion this year.

Heightened prospects for Vietnam-South Africa cooperation The Vietnamese embassy in South Africa and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Johannesburg (JCCI) coorganized a seminar on July 25 to promote trade activities in both nations.

Addressing the seminar, Ambassador Le Huy Hoang highlighted great opportunities to deepen all-around cooperation, especially in economics and trade.

Last year‘s two-way trade turnover reached over US$1 billion, up 20 fold compared to 2002‘s figure of US$54 million.

Ambassador Hoang expressed hope that the seminar will provide fresh impetus to promoting bilateral economics and trade cooperation.

For her part, JCCI President Fay Mukaddam expressed delight at the growing Vietnam-South Africa relationship over the years, stating that JCCI will do its utmost to boost investment and trade between the two nations.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade‘s African and West and South Asian Market Department Director Tran Quang Huy said that Africa has become a great potential market for Vietnamese goods.

In the future, apart from traditional goods such as farm produce and seafood, garment and textile, footwear, Vietnam aims to boost exports of mobile phones, computers, and electronics components to the lucrative market.

Meanwhile, South Africa can provide Vietnam with minerals, wood products and cotton, Huy said.

Vietnam‘s trade councilor to South Africa Nguyen Hong Tien in turn said that the seminar offered an opportunity for businesses to utilize their advantages and learn more about necessary formalities to enhance future cooperation.

Business Network International debuts in Laos The Business Network International (BNI) made its debut in Laos on July 26 at a ceremony attended by a number of representatives from the Vietnamese and Cambodian business communities.

Speaking at the ceremony, BNI Vietnam Chairman Ho Quang Minh said the organization plays a strategically important role in assisting companies in expanding their business connections, creating more favourable conditions for them to penetrate the global marketplace.

He added that BNI Vietnam always stands ready to share experiences with Lao businesspeople, and provide assistance to their neighbour in improving the quality and effectiveness of international integration.

On the same day, BNI Vietnam held exchanges with Overseas Vietnamese (OVs) in the capital of Vientiane.

During the exchanges OVs voiced their excitement of having the opportunity to join BNI and optimism for locating suitable partners to promote economy and trade.

Chairman Minh said he hopes OVs in Laos will act as a bridge to help Vietnamese companies strengthen trade activities in other Asian countries, specifically Laos and Thailand.

Concerns mount over low credit growth Many commercial banks are raising concerns that cheap money has not led to the growth-igniting investment spree the monetary policy was designed to encourage.

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Credit growth remained sluggish in the first half of the year at 3.52% and commercial banks are cautioning the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) decision to continue lowering lending interest rates to stimulate credit growth and spending is likely to be ineffectual.

SBV Governor Nguyen Van Binh optimistically said the entire banking system may achieve an overall growth rate of 12% - 14% by the end of this year. However, a more conservative prediction is that it will peak at slightly over 10%.

The Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) recently reviewed its operations for the first six months of 2014 and announced that its growth rate was above the national average.

Vietcombank Director General Nghiem Xuan Thanh said the bank‘s capital mobilization was estimated at VND378,780 billion in the first half, up 14.2% compared to early this year and threefold the whole banking sector‘s average growth rate (5.3%).

As a result, Vietcombank‘s pre-tax profit hit VND5,178 billion in the first six months of 2014, nearly 14.2% higher than last year's same period.

The bank also enjoyed remarkable achievements in resolving bad debts, which is currently hovering around 3.06%, much lower than that recorded in the whole banking sector. Additionally, the bad debt reserve ratio is moving in a positive direction, approaching 90%.

Tien Phong Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TPBank) in turn reports it has earned more than VND263 billion in profits since the beginning of this year, fulfilling 60% of its annual plan in spite of encountering numerous challenges in its restructuring process.

Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Sacombank) Director General Phan Huy Khang said since January 2014 its total assets have risen 10.8%, with its profit meeting 50% of the set target for the year.

Khang attributed the bank‘s successful operations to high demand for capital from industrial and processing zones in Ho Chi Minh City and the central province of Khanh Hoa. For a number of reasons, some other banks, such as the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) and the HCM City Development Joint Stock Commercial Bank (HDBank), are hesitant to reveal their profits.

Many commercial banks are concerned low credit growth may result in the central bank reducing interest rates further.

In the present economic climate with the inflation rate is in line with deposit rates, further reduction of interest rates will be counterproductive and adversely affect the economy as a whole.

Lower interest rates on bank loans require banks to lower the interest they pay on customer deposits which disincentives savings and does little, if anything, to stimulate spending, bank leaders say.

Lower interest rates are quite simply not the key to encouraging businesses to borrow and spur expansion of their operations, they say.

At a recent meeting to review banks‘ operation in the first six months of 2014, SBV Governor Nguyen Van Binh underscored that the banking sector‘s decision to reduce interest rate by 0.5% resulted in commercial banks having to cut deposit rates by 0.5% - 1% to maintain their liquidity.

Binh revealed credit growth is set to be controlled at 12% - 14%, with a view to serving both investors and bankers. Currently, there‘s a rising demand for bank loans, he said, adding this is a positive signal for improvements in credit growth.

According to the SBV Governor, the credit growth in the second half is usually higher than that recorded in the first half. He forecast growth rate in the second half will hit 7% to bring the entire year‘s figure to over 10%.

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Binh pledged to strengthen cooperation between the SBV and relevant ministries and agencies to remove obstacles and help businesses and credit organizations iron out their snags in operations.

Vietfish 2014 to attract global companies More than 170 domestic and foreign companies have registered to take part in the 2014 Vietnam Fisheries International Exhibition (Vietfish 2014) to be held in HCM City from August 6-8.

Leading consumers of Vietnamese seafood such as the European Union, Japan, the US, Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia will send representatives to the exhibition, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

Participating businesses will showcase products and advanced seafood processing technologies at more than 300 stands covering a total of 10,000sq.m at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre (SECC).

The fair aims to promote links between domestic and foreign businesses in seafood production, processing and export. It creates a forum for businesses to share information, increase cooperation, and help promote the brand of Vietnamese seafood globally.

Within the framework of the exhibition, conferences and workshops will be organised with the participations of many international scholars from the Global GAP, Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA), World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF) and VASEP. Vietfish has been held annually since 1998.

FDI hits US$9.53 billion in 7 months Inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI) dipped 19.90% in the first seven months of 2014 year-on-year to US$9.53 billion, according to) the Ministry of Planning and Investment‘s Foreign Investment Agency (FIA).

The FIA reported that as of July 20, FDI firm‘s total disbursements were estimated at US$6.8 billion. They generated an export turnover of US$55.83 billion and incurred around US$46.04 in imports, resulting in a trade surplus of US$9.78 billion.

In the reviewed period, as many as 889 FDI projects were licensed with total registered capital of US$6.85 billion. About 300 projects increased their investment by US$2.67 billion.

The processing and manufacturing industries took the lead in FDI attraction with 448 newly-licensed projects, followed by the real estate and construction sectors.

At present, 46 countries and territories are investing in Vietnam, with the Republic of Korea ranking first in terms of total registered investment (around US$3.13), accounting for 32.8% of the country‘s FDI inflows.

They are operating companies in 45 provinces and cities across the country, and many are keen on northern Bac Ninh province that led the country in FDI attraction with US$1.33 billion.

Malaysia’s CIMB bank eyes expanding into Vietnam Malaysia‘s second largest bank, CIMB Group, is planning to obtain banking licenses in Vietnam as part of its drive to expand into the fast-growing Southeast Asian market, according to Reuters.

The group has embarked upon an ambitious plan for opening branches in all Southeast Asian nations by 2015 coinciding with the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), reports ChannelNewAsia.

At present, CIMB is the fifth largest bank in the region in terms of total assets. The Kuala Lumpur-based bank has an estimated 40,000 employees in 17 locations throughout ASEAN and the Asia-Pacific region

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In Vietnam, Malaysia‘s largest bank Maybank is also entrenched in investing in the Vietnamese market.

Maybank is now a strategic shareholder of An Binh Bank (ABBank) which has opened two branches in Hanoi and HCM City.

As of the end of 2013, Vietnam had five wholly foreign-invested banks with 100 branches and representative offices.

Seminar discusses preferential rules of origin A seminar was held in HCM City on July 24 to assist businesses better understand the ‗preferential rules of origin incorporated in free trade agreements (FTAs) so that their export products are eligible for preferential treatment.

Speakers at the seminar explained, preferential Rules of Origin are concerned with determining the nationality of goods. When a product is manufactured in Vietnam in accordance with the rules, it becomes what is called a Vietnam ‗originating product‘ and is eligible for tariff reductions when exported into another member country.

In summary, the rules help maintain the delicate balance between facilitating trade liberalisation and preventing trade fraud.

With certificates of origin and preferential tariffs, businesses‘ production and export activities will be promoted, helping boost the national economy and expanding international trade relations. Therefore, businesses should devise strategies to learn more about certificate of origin (C/O).

At the seminar, businesses were updated with specific information on trade agreements that Vietnam signed with other nations and territories around the globe and the tariff reductions qualifying Vietnam originating products receive when exported to other member countries.

Monopoly in railway sector set to go Vietnam Railway Corporation will no longer hold monopoly in the railway sector once the Government approves a decree that prohibits those entities managing the railway infrastructure from doing railway transport business.

According to the draft decree meant to provide guidelines for the Railway Law, enterprises assigned to manage national railway infrastructure facilities will be barred from directly doing railway transport business, or joining forces with other entities to do so on railway sections under such enterprises‘ management.

Meanwhile, all other local or foreign companies who meet requirements as per the law could engage themselves in railway transport business or related business, and will not face any discrimination when they rent the railway infrastructure invested by the Government.

The nation‘s railway infrastructure will mainly be leased for operating trains, but other associated facilities can also be leased, such as train stations, train stations‘ surrounding areas, warehouses, and signal cable systems.

The Ministry of Transport which helped prepare the decree said that it will create a competitive environment for all enterprises without any discrimination with an aim to attract capital from the private sector and ease pressure on the State budget.

Once the new rule takes effect, Vietnam Railway Corporation could only choose to manage the railway infrastructure, or to do railway transportation business. Currently, the State-owned giant is allowed to do both functions.

Customs uses GPS to track goods transport

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All import-export shipments transported by containers are now officially tracked by customs agencies via Global Positioning System (GPS) devices following a decision by the General Department of Customs, effective from this month.

The General Department of Customs issued Decision 2031/QD-TCHQ introducing regulations on the use of GPS in managing and inspecting containerized goods that are transferred from port to port, temporarily imported for re-export and transited in the country.

In June the department told its customs offices to strengthen management and supervision using this technology.

GPS devices will be installed on container trucks to avoid smuggling and commercial fraud during the transportation process. GPS chips are capable of transmitting warning signals when containers are unsealed or opened, as well as locating the truck position on its journey from port to port.

This monitoring system will record the entire routes of containers and immediately send warning messages to the customs agencies if the trucks are in the wrong direction or exceeding the parking time limit. It also reports information about the container trucks‘ journey, time schedule, parking location and so on.

At first, the customs departments in Haiphong City and Quang Ninh Province will run a pilot project of using GPS devices in their cargo inspections. After the trial use in these two locations, the General Department of Customs will expand the use of GPS to HCMC, Hanoi, Lang Son, Vung Tau, Danang, Quang Tri and other regions.

Stringent rules imposed on imports of used machinery Used machinery, equipment and production lines can be imported into Vietnam from September 1 if they can meet the strict conditions of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

In Circular 20/2014/TT-BKHCN, the ministry states that second-hand machines in most cases can be imported if they have been in use for less than five years and their quality is equivalent to 80% of new machines.

However, the ban remains in place for many types of secondhand machines, especially medical and electronic devices as well as motorbikes and automotive components.

The circular provides specific conditions for the import of secondhand machines.

Used machines and equipment for agriculture and beverage as well as those for postal services must have been in use for less than three years and have quality 80% assured.

Old machinery in the fields of geological and mining; shipbuilding, ship repair and infrastructure construction; and printing will be approved for importation if their quality is 80% assured and they have been in use for no more than seven, ten and 15 years respectively.

Besides, customs procedures required for importers are also more stringent. In particular, importers have to submit all relevant dossiers proving such used machinery meet the criteria.

For second-hand production lines, requirements are similar to those applied to old machinery and equipment. In addition, the importer is also required to show projects in need of such used production lines that have been approved by competent authorities.

By imposing stringent regulations on secondhand machinery and equipment, authorities clarify their stance of encouraging enterprises to use brand-new machinery, equipment and production lines with advanced technology.

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According to experts, Vietnam has been facing the risk of becoming ―the world‘s industrial dumpsite‖ due to the rampant import of outdated machinery, equipment and production lines with low quality and harmful to the environment.

Investors still upbeat about earnings results The local market beat the 600-point resistance level for the second time this month after two days of consolidation thanks to solid earnings reports from several oil and gas companies.

GAS again led the rally by adding 1.11 points to the VN-Index, followed by VNM and PVD. Other affiliates of PetroVietnam such as PVB and PVS also made strong gains, helping push the main index up 4.56 points, or 0.76%, from the session earlier to close at 602.06.

As more companies announced second-quarter earnings results, trading volume and value on the Hochiminh Stock Exchange jumped 34% and 37% to 87.8 million shares worth nearly VND1.5 trillion.

FLC continued to be the volume leader with more than 22 million shares traded. The ticker rallied for three days in a row after being added to the VN30 basket.

Foreigners‘ net share acquisitions amounted to VND118.5 billion on the southern bourse, including VND67.2 billion worth of PAN shares through block deals. They also bought VND20.2 billion of PVD shares and VND10.4 billion of PET shares.

The Hanoi market was almost flat with the HNX-Index inching up 0.07 point, or 0.09%, to close at 80.42.

The bourse saw 44.4 million shares worth nearly VND619 billion changing hands, up 15.8% and 39% from the previous day respectively. Foreigners net bought VND6.5 billion, in which they took VND12.5 billion of PVS shares and VND4.1 billion of VCG shares.

According to vietstock.vn, positive signs were clear as 18 out of 24 sectors gained ground Thursday. Both stock indexes and liquidity improved strongly after some correction in previous days.

Investors showed interest in speculative stocks after having offloaded the tickers in recent days. The mining group took the lead with a 2.13% rise, followed by construction, real estate and securities.

Therefore, the market is expected to maintain its rally in the last session of the week thanks to good earnings results of blue-chips.

Concerning the macroeconomic outlook, Viet Capital Securities Company said inflation would remain low although July‘s consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.23% month-on-month mainly due to the recent gasoline price hikes.

Meanwhile, food and foodstuff remain fairly subdued with foodstuff falling for the fifth consecutive month. ―We should see a gradual acceleration of prices in the second half as the peak season nears. But the year-to-date figure, which now sits at a 10-year low of 1.62%, give us little reason to change our inflation forecast of 5.5-6% for 2014,‖ it said.

Vietnam enjoys higher rice export prices than rivals Vietnam is offering rice export prices higher than other countries such as Thailand, India and Pakistan.

According to www.oryza.com, a website on the international rice market, Vietnamese rice prices are US$455 and US$405 per ton for 5% and 25% broken types respectively, US$10-25 per ton higher than those offered by other countries.

Explaining the issue, Nguyen Dinh Bich, a local rice expert, said Vietnamese exporters need not compete with rivals such as Thailand and India.

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At the moment, the government of Thailand has yet to finish its rice inspection program, so the country could not speed up rice exports. Meanwhile, India has also scaled down rice sales given concerns over El Nino impacts.

Many rice importing countries have plans to increase stocks, including the Philippines that should improve food reserves in the aftermath of Typhoon Ramasun.

Therefore, Vietnamese rice exporters still have their advantages until August or September. After that, rice prices may fluctuate in line with weather conditions, Bich said.

Nguyen Hung Linh, chairman of the Vietnam Food Association (VFA), said rice price hikes followed market demands. As Vietnam now has no much rice to sell, it is reasonable for enterprises to offer higher prices.

Local firms have signed contracts to export around 5.3 million tons of rice. Whether enterprises will consider signing new contracts or not depends on rice output in the upcoming crop, Linh said.

Earlier, VFA set up a rice export target at 6.2 million tons for 2014, a decline compared to the previous year, due to market difficulties and tougher competition. Though local enterprises have gained an edge recently, VFA still sticks to its goal, Linh said.

In the year to July 17, Vietnam had exported 3.26 million tons of rice worth over US$1.4 billion.

In the local market, paddy prices in the Mekong Delta have been hovering from VND5,550-5,650 per kilo and long-grain type from VND5,750-5,850 per kilo. The prices of unprocessed rice used to produce 5% broken rice range from VND7,150 to VND7,250 a kilo and those for 25% broken rice from VND6,900 to VND7,000.

FOB prices of 5% broken rice are VND8,600-8,700 a kilo, 15% broken rice VND8,100-8,200, and 25% broken rice VND7,650-7,750.

Transport firms bemoan tight checks for truck registration The tight checks on trucks at registration centers have posed more challenges for transport firms in recent months and many firms take more than one week to complete procedures due to the remodeled trunk of their vehicles.

Nguyen Van Hung, director of Binh Duong Province-based U&I Logistics, complained many procedural changes require his firm to have more time when having its vehicles registered and this has made the firm lack trucks to transport goods for clients as requested.

The owner of trucks should remove the extended truck parts of their trucks otherwise they will fail procedures at registration centers, according to another transport firm which operates more 20 trucks and semi-trailer trucks.

As a result, instead of using ten trucks to transport 300 tons of goods, transport firms now have to use more trucks to carry the same volume.

However, some transport firms said the registration process of new trucks is easy than that for the old ones, especially the remodeled vehicles. To avoid a host of difficulties at registration centers, transport firms have invested in new trucks and this is why the demand to buy vehicles is surging and the truck price is up.

Dinh Nam Dinh, vice chairman of the HCMC Cargo Transport Association, said truck purchases are now not as easy and buyers will have to wait four to five months to take delivery of new vehicles.

Roads in Vietnam can normally handle trucks of 12-13 tons or 25 tons maximum while a semi-trailer truck‘s load amounts up to 37 tons. Therefore, the truck cannot easily cross a bridge if it is carrying goods.

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This month, the Ministry of Transport, the Directorate for Roads of Vietnam and Vietnam Registry will deploy more measures to tighten controls on vehicle loads and at the same time find ways to help transport firms out of their difficulties.

Finance ministry mulls tariff rises on fertilizer imports The Ministry of Finance plans to double the duties on imported urea and DAP fertilizer products to 6% from the current 3% in an effort to support sales of locally-made products and ease difficulties of local enterprises.

According to the Vietnam National Chemical Group (Vinachem), fertilizer inventory in the country surged to 685,000 tons in the first four months of this year. Of which, the volume of urea in stock soared a staggering 900% year-on-year to138,000 tons.

Vinachem estimated domestic fertilizer and insecticide output in the January-April period was down 5.8% in volume and 10.6% in revenue.

As the group attributed the increase in fertilizer inventory to rising imports, it called for the ministry to impose higher tariff rates of 7% on urea imports and 8% on DAP. However, the ministry plans to impose a single tariff rate of 6% on the urea and DAP fertilizer imports based on Vietnam‘s commitment to the global trade club WTO. The ministry will announce its final decision after gathering comments from the ministries of trade, agriculture-rural development, and planning-investment, and the Vietnam Farmers Association.

Le Thanh Tung from the Cultivation Department under the agriculture ministry, warned of the possibility of supply surpassing demand which is around 900,000 tons of DAP fertilizer per year. Therefore, he predicted the Ministry of Finance will hike the import tariffs.

Pham Van Quynh, director of the Can Tho Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, told the Daily that the tariff rise plan is a needed policy at the moment as it will help promote consumption of locally-made products despite possible protest from enterprises. ―I think that the enterprises heavily dependent on fertilizer imports would react against the policy but this policy will place a possible impact on the local fertilizer industry,‖ Quynh said.

Quynh said the duty rise in fertilizer imports will result in higher prices of locally-produced fertilizer products and more pressure on farmers. However, farmers will be able to cut input costs by properly spreading fertilizer on their farms.

Tung noted fertilizer trading firms would take advantage of the tariff increases to push their selling prices to earn more profits and this would hit farmers if this is translated into reality.

Tung proposed administering agencies tighten controls on the prices of fertilizer products on the domestic market if higher import tariffs are applied.

Le Minh Canh, a fertilizer trader in Tien Giang Province, said local producers and trading firms usually peg their selling prices to those imported from China. For instance, if a 50-kilogram bag of Chinese urea fertilizer is sold at VND390,000, the prices of domestic fertilizer products are adjusted to make them the same or a little bit higher.

Therefore, Canh assumed the possibility of local fertilizer prices rising is high if the import tariffs are up.

On January 1 this year, the Ministry of Finance adjusted up the tariff rates from 0% to 3% for imported urea and DAP.

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Statistics from the agriculture ministry showed Vietnam spent US$547 million importing 1.73 million tons of fertilizer in the first six months of this year, down 32.1% in value and 13.6% in volume compared to the same period last year.

Foreign funds seek to invest in local tech firms Two foreign investment funds Monk‘s Hill Ventures and Digital Media Partners will look for opportunities to pour their money into new Vietnamese technology firms taking part in Tech in Asia Arena, which kicked off in HCMC yesterday.

The two funds are expected to invest approximately US$30 million in the five technology startups chosen to make presentations at the event. As scheduled, Monk‘s Hill Ventures director Kou-Yi Lim and Digital Media Partners president Khor Chieh Suang will participate in Tech in Asia Arena.

Tech in Asia Arena gives firms the opportunity to call for funds and learn how to expand their presence to Southeast Asia. The event also includes seminars for seasoned investors to share expectations from technology business startups and experiences for companies to expand their operations to the region and the world.

Monk‘s Hill Ventures intends to invest US$1-5 million and Digital Media Partners plans from US$500,000 to US$1 million in each of the firm they pick at the event in the initial time. Digital Media Partners will add US$3 million to every of its chosen firms when they expand.

Prior to Monk‘s Hill Ventures, Lim was former chief executive officer of Singapore‘s Infocomm Investments, a US$200-million venture capital fund for cultivating promising technology startups at the seed and early stages.

Suang used to work at the Economic Development Board of Singapore for a project to develop the island state into a hub for technology startups. Later, she moved to Infocomm Investments and Nusantara Ventures.

Cooking oil giant raises $24m in IPO Viet Nam Vegetable Oils Industry Corporation (Vocarimex) raised more than VND500 billion (US$23.6 million) from its initial public offering yesterday with 37.9 million shares sold.

This was a successful IPO of a State-owned enterprise (SOE) after a large number of shares of many SOEs had failed to attract buyers at their IPOs recently.

Vocarimex fetched between VND13,000 (US$0.61) and VND30,000 ($1.4) a share, averaging VND13,428 ($0.63) a share, which was 19 per cent higher than its initial price, by 42 individual and five institutional investors.

Notably, investors registered to buy up to 84.4 million shares, 2.2 times higher than the offer volume.

After the IPO, Vocarimex's charter capital would be at VND1.218 trillion ($57.4 million) with the State holdings of 36 per cent.

The company also planned to sell 39 million shares, accounting for 32 per cent of its charter capital, to two strategic partners which were Kinh Do Corporation (24 per cent) and VPBank Securities (8 per cent).

Vocarimex currently dominates the Viet Nam's cooking oil market with holdings in leading cooking oil companies, including Tuong An, Tan Binh and Cai Lan vegetable oil companies, which all together account for 85 per cent of the local market, according to Vietcombank Securities.

FPT reports lower than expected revenue due to domestic difficulties Financing and Promoting Technology Corporation (FPT) has reported its business results for the first six months of the year.

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FPT reported a total profit of VND1.2 trillion ($56.338 million) before tax and VND1.04 trillion ($48.826 million) after tax, a decrease of two per cent compared to the same period last year.

The company's total revenue was VND15.2 trillion ($713.615 million), an increase of two per cent and equal to 107 per cent of the six month target.

Revenue from overseas markets rose 26 per cent to VND1.4 trillion ($69 million).

The figures were less than expected due to negative effects in the domestic market, said the corporation.

FPT has also completed its acquisition of RWE IT Slovakia, and is targetting a revenue of $80 million from Europe in the next five years.

Campaign to support Taiwanese businesses in Viet Nam launched Taiwan Excellence – an international campaign co-ordinated by the Department of Foreign Trade and the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) – opened in Viet Nam on Thursday.

The campaign was launched to support Taiwanese businesses to promote their brands and products in Viet Nam, and contribute to the development of the traditional relationship between Viet Nam and Taiwan.

The 5th Taiwan Excellence campaign features 45 brands from various fields, including interactive activities.

Viet Nam, Czechs move to boost ties Viet Nam and the Czech Republic have agreed to enhance the operation of their intergovernmental economic co-operation committee.

They have also agreed to encourage firms to invest in an effort to boost two-way trade.

The agreement was reached in Prague on Thursday at meetings between Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh and senior Czech officials, including Deputy PM Pavel Belobradek, Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek, and Minister of Industry and Trade Jan Mladek.

Minh suggested that the Czech side increase imports of rice, rubber, coffee and seafood.

The Czechs offered to consider Viet Nam's bid to run for a seat in the UN Economic and Social Council for 2016-18 and the UN Security Council for 2020-21.

They are also committed to an early conclusion of an EU-Viet Nam free-trade agreement.

The hosts said Viet Nam had been a crucial factor in developing peace, stability and development in the region , adding that they considered Viet Nam an important partner in Southeast Asia.

Regarding the East Sea issue, Zaoralek said the Czech Republic backed the settlement of all disputes by peaceful measures in accordance with international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Minh thanked the Czech government for its recognition of the Vietnamese community there as the country's 14th ethnic minority group.

Both sides said they hoped President Truong Tan Sang would pay an official visit to the European nation when appropriate.

State Audit highlights public debt State Audit of Viet Nam (SAV) plans to hold an audit on public debt next year.

SAV announced the plan yesterday as it released the national financial audit for the 2012 fiscal year.

It examined records from 16 ministries and central agencies, 34 major cities and provinces, 32 State-owned enterprises and credit institutions.

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SAV reported that State budget collection in 2012 was more than VND1,058 trillion (US$50 billion), 1.9 per cent higher than planned.

State budget spending was more than VND1,170 trillion ($55 billion ), 8.3 per cent higher than planned.

The overspending accounted for 4.75 per cent of gross domestic production, 0.05 per cent lower than the rate approved by the National Assembly.

Public debt in 2012 was more than VND1,642 trillion ($77.4 billion), accounting for 55.7 per cent of GDP, while the public debt in 2011 accounted for 54.9 per cent of GDP. Head of SAV's General Affairs Department Dao Van Dung said State-owned enterprises incorrectly reported revenues and taxable costs, thus paid less value-added tax and corporate tax.

They were required to pay an extra VND3 trillion ($141.4 million ) to the State budget.

By the end of 2012, 15 ministries, central and local agencies had debts of more than VND1 trillion ($47.1 million) each. Many localities reported the start of a large number of projects in 2012, but many projects proceeded slowly.

After audits conducted in 2011, the SAV said violators should pay fines worth more than VND14.5 trillion ($683.5 million), but during 2012, just 65 per cent of this was collected.

Last year, SAV audited State Bank of Viet Nam, Viet Nam Development bank and three commercial banks.

Vietinbank, Vietcombank and Agribank claimed profits with 2012 pre-tax revenues of more than VND8 trillion, VND5.7 trillion and VND2.8 trillion respectively.

Dung noted that the bad-debt rate of banks was high. By the end of 2012, bad debts accounted for 4.08 per cent of total loans, according to reports from 125 local credit institutions. The ratio increased to 4.46 per cent until June, 2013.

BIDV, Vietravel to offer joint finance, travel products The Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam (BIDV) has signed a co-operation deal with tour operator Vietravel to offer finance and banking packages, travel insurance and a co-branded MasterCard.

BIDV has committed in the agreement to offer Vietravel customers with financial evidence and promotional services.

BIDV Insurance Corporation (BIC), a unit of BIDV, will provide customers with its international travel insurance in partnership with the International Assistance Company (SOS).

Mobile app creation contest kicks off Vietnamese individuals and organisations, inside and outside the country, have been invited to take part in a contest on developing applications for mobile devices.

The Viet Nam Internet Association and Microsoft Corporation in co-operation with TingWorld, a Vietnamese mobile application company, and Xa Hoi Thong Tin (Information Society) magazine have organised the contest, aimed at boosting the development of the Vietnamese mobile market.

In a category for completed products, the board of judges will award VND50 million (nearly US$2,400) for the first prize, VND20 million ($950) for the second and VND10 million (nearly $480) for the third. Meanwhile, the board will give VND15 million ($700), VND10 million and VND5 million ($240) for the top three outstanding ideas, respectively.

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Organisers and sponsors will also present awards for exceptional products. Microsoft will give an award worth VND20 million for an app with creative solutions to solve issue in cities of Viet Nam. Mobogenie, an Android synchronisation software and applications developer, will grant VND20 million for the most downloaded app at the Mobogenie market. The same amount will also be given to the best ideas or products for the community by TingWorld company.

The awards ceremony will be held in HCM City in the beginning of December.

Participants are required to submit their complete products or ideas from August 1 to September 30 to Xa Hoi Thong Tin magazine, 10 Ha Hoi Street in Ha Noi. Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR Tags:rice importers,economic growth rate,Japanese investment,Foreign funds,

National Rice Policy Committee meets on the nation’s rice production future National Rice Policy Committee meets on the nation‘s rice production future BANGKOK, 29 July 2014 (NNT) – Thailand‘s rice production strategy will include more measures to ensure good quality of rice and fair prices to farmers. The policy was proposed during the meeting of the Rice Policy and Management Committee yesterday chaired by the Deputy Chief of the National Council for Peace and Order for economic affairs, General Chatchai Sarikallaya. Gen. Chatchai said the committee agreed to include a production and marketing strategy in the panel‘s work, to ensure that high quality grain would be produced and fetch rewarding prices. The committee in the past two months focused their work on inspection of stockpiling. Meanwhile, reports by related officials showed that more than two-thirds of the 1,787 warehouses nationwide have already been inspected, with the majority or 80% of the examined rice stocks are still in good conditions and matched the initial recorded quantity. As for the release of stockpiled rice into the market, the deputy NCPO chief for Economic Affairs stated that selling of the rice stocks would be carried out carefully to make sure they would earn decent prices and the sale wouldn‘t affect the market mechanism.

USA Rice Hosts U.S. International Trade Commission Team Michael Rue (r) shares experiences with the ITC team ARLINGTON, VA -- A large contingent of investigators and economists from the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) visited the USA Rice Federation headquarters today to meet with staff and members for the first in a series of interviews and fact finding sessions as the ITC's Section 332 trade investigation gets underway.Triggered by a request from the House Ways & Means Committee, the ITC is investigating the competitive factors facing the U.S. rice industry, including, but not limited to, foreign production and trade policies.

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The study will also take a comprehensive look at the U.S. rice industry.The U.S. rice industry asserts that many foreign competitors have unfair advantages built into their systems. Of particular concern are Brazil, Thailand, and Vietnam, but India, the Philippines and others are also being included in the study.USA Rice members Michael Rue and Dow Brantley, in town for other events, also attended the meeting. Rue is a California grower and vice chair of the USA Rice International Trade Policy Committee and was scheduled to testify before a Senate Committee on trade. Brantley, the USA Rice chairman-elect, attended a White House agriculture event earlier in the day (see next story).

"It's important that we have a viable and fair trading regime," Rue told investigators. "Every country has little games they play with the market, whether it's subsidies to farmers or somewhere else in the stream. As a producer I've come to realize that I'm not just competing with a producer from another country, I'm competing with an entire system. We're counting on the ITC to find out what's really going on in these markets."The investigators asked several questions about the U.S. system, and had specific questions about farm operations and decisions that they posed to Rue and Brantley."This was very helpful and I hope we'll continue these frank discussions," said Joanna Bonarriva, a USITC Lead International Trade Analyst.A formal hearing is scheduled for September in Washington, DC where representatives of the U.S. rice industry, Members of Congress, and foreign dignitaries are expected to testify."We are encouraging our members to make themselves available to the investigators so they can get a complete understanding of how rice works here, so they can better understand the challenges we face when competing in the global market," added USA Rice President and CEO Betsy Ward.

Contact: Michael Klein, (703) 236-1458

Iran slows down tea and basmati rice import from India

By Sutanuka Ghosal, ET Bureau | 29 Jul, 2014, 12.16PM IST Iran is a major buyer of basmati rice and in FY14 the West Asian nation had imported 14 lakh tonne basmati rice.KOLKATA: While the neighbour is not picking up tea from India because it has enough stock back home, it increased the import duty on basmati rice from 22% to 40% on July 23, giving a blow to Indian exports. Talking to ET, CS Bedi, chairman of Rossell Tea, said: "Iranian buyers generally come to buy tea in Juneend and early July .

They were following this pattern for the past two years. This year, they are yet to come though there are enquiries from the country. The reason may be that Iran has enough stock as it had lifted a good amount of orthodox tea in the past year. They may come late this time." Rossell Tea is one of the leading orthodox tea producers in India. India exported 25 million kg of orthodox tea to Iran in FY14. "We are expecting Iran to buy Indian tea from August onwards," said AN Singh, chairman of Indian Tea Association.

India's total exports in FY14 were 225 million kg. For basmati rice exporters too, business with Iran does not seem to be bright this time. Iran is a major buyer of basmati rice and in FY14 the West Asian nation had

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imported 14 lakh tonne basmati rice. India's total exports of basmati in FY14 were 38.7 lakh tonne. The rise in import duty to 40% will serve a major blow to Indian exports to Iran. "It will definitely impact exports of basmati rice to Iran, which is gradually discouraging imports of rice and trying to become self sufficient," said a senior official of the All India Rice Exporters Association (AIREA).

In addition to the higher import duty, the Islamic nation has also introduced a new set of standards for imports.

Vijay Sethia, ex-president of AIREA, said: "Iran has revised the accepted level of arsenic in basmati rice from 120 ppb to 80 ppb (parts per billion). Due to this change, basmati exports to Iran may have temporarily slumped." "Iranian buyers want the source to be properly validated and also they want different kinds of certificates to ensure that the arsenic level is less. They have also suggested that the rice imported from India will be tested in their laboratories. It will take some time to put the system in place.

But once everything is in order, imports will start picking up," he added. However, it is not clear when will shipments to Iran will pick up. It is likely to happen eventually as Pakistan, the only other supplier of basmatitype rice to Iran, has lower stocks and has no formalised barter trade system with Iran.

Harrell to replace Saichuk as state rice specialist

Nikki Henderson 07/28/2014 02:59 PM

Harrell will start the new job in January with the retirement of the existing rice specialist, Johnny Saichuk.Director of the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station Steve Linscombe said, "Dustin will maintain a research program at the station in addition to taking on the additional responsibility of the extension education program for the rice industry in Louisiana." A doctorate-level scientist will also be hired to assist Harrell in ongoing agronomy research.The verification program that Saichuk conducted across the state will continue. Under the program, the rice specialist works with a few farmers each year on fields in south and north Louisiana rice-growing areas, monitoring the crop closely from planting until harvest.Linscombe said, "Harrell is probably the best pure soil scientist we have had in that position in many years."Harrell has solved some problems for growing rice that related to soil nutrients. In addition, Harrell's work has improved the efficiency of nitrogen fertilizer on rice

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crops.Linscombe said, "He's done a lot of ground-breaking research to enhance productivity of both the first and second rice crops."Harrell will soon start working alongside Saichuk to learn details of the new position.

Harrell said, "I'm excited for the opportunity and the challenges that come with being the Louisiana state rice specialist."Harrell also acknowledged Saichuk's contribution to the state's rice industry. Harrell said, "Through the years, I've really looked up to Dr. Saichuk, and he's taught me a lot. I know I have very big shoes to fill."Saichuk expressed that he's satisfied that he's retiring with Harrell as the new rice specialist. Saichuk said, "He's got all the tools he needs to do a good job. He's probably ahead of me when I started this job."Copyright 2014 Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Image: LSU AgCenter agronomist Dustin Harrell has been selected to become the next Louisiana rice extension specialist.

Solution to World Hunger? Scientists Sequence Genome of African Rice to Solve 'Nine Billion People Question'

By Lydia Smith July 29, 2014 11:24 BST

An international team of researchers have sequenced the complete genome of African rice, enabling the development of new rice varieties that are better able to cope with increasing environmental stresses to help solve global hunger issues.The genetic information will also enhance understanding of the growing patterns of African rice.The effort to sequence the African rice genome was led by Rod Wing, director of the Genomics Institute at the University of Arizona.

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"Rice feeds half the world, making it the most important food crop," Wing said, as reported in Science Daily.Rice will play a key role in helping to solve what we call the nine billion people question," he added, referring to predictions of what the world's population will increase to - many of whom are likely to be living in areas where food is scarce - by 2050.The question lies in how to grow enough food to feed the world's population and prevent the health, economic and social problems associated with hunger and malnutrition.

The research allows scientists and agriculturalists to search for ways to cross Asian and African species to develop new varieties of rice with the high-yield traits of Asian rice and the hardiness of African rice."African rice is once more at the forefront of cultivation strategies that aim to confront climate change and food availability challenges," said co-author Judith Carney, a professor of geography at at the University of California.The African rice genome is important because many of the genes code for traits that make African rice resistant to environmental stress, such as long periods of drought, high salinity in the soils and flooding.

"The idea is to create a super-rice that will be higher yielding but will have less of an environmental impact -- such as varieties that require less water, fertiliser and pesticides," said Wing.Hardy, high-yield crops will become increasingly vital for human survival as the world faces the environmental effects of climate change and an evergrowing global population.In analysing the 33,000 genes that make up the African rice genome, the researchers discovered that during the process of domestication, Africans and Asians independently selected for many of the same genetic traits in the two species, such as higher nutrition.

"By understanding the entire genus at a genome level, we have a whole new pool of genetic variation that can be used to combat pests and plant pathogens," said Wing."After decades of promoting high-yielding Asian varieties, the emphasis now is on developing types that combine the former's higher yields with Oryza glaberrima's (African rice) tolerance of environmental stress," Carney told Science 2.0.

The research was published online in Nature Genetics.

Photo: A woman works in a rice mill in Aliade community in the Gwer local government area of the central state of Benue, NigeriaReuters

Cooking in a hurry – the many uses of brown rice Posted on July 28, 2014 by Michelle Gordon-Releford, Michigan State University Extension inShare

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   

Hungry, in a rush and trying to stay healthy? Brown rice and vegetables is a delicious, economical and quick meal choice. A warm bowl of brown rice tastes great on steamed, sautéed or raw vegetables. This meal can include three food grounds: Whole grains, lean meats and vegetables. Make the meal even faster by using frozen prepackaged vegetables, such as chopped carrots, onions, squash, sweet peppers or anything else onhand. Leftover brown rice can be microwaved in less than one minute with the same outcome as prepackaged instant oatmeal.Brown rice is a whole grain. Whole grains are beneficial for a variety of reasons including weight management and lowering cholesterol. Michigan State University Extension recommends making half of the grains you eat each day a whole grain product. Whole grains contain dietary fiber which is important for proper bowel function and reducing constipation. Whole grains promote fullness during meals and will leave you feeling full for longer. For more foods that are good sources of fiber read the list called fiber content for foods.

Why are whole grains so important? Whole grain benefits include: Good source of magnesium minerals for building bones. Magnesium also releases energy from muscles.

Selenium protects cells from oxidation and aids the immune system.

Iron is found in whole grains. Iron is used to carry oxygen in the blood.

Folate (Folic acid) is a nutrient found in whole grains this is important for women who plan on getting pregnant or are at the age where they can still have children. This nutrient reduces the risk of neural tube defects, spinal bifida and anencephaly during fetal development.

To enjoy brown rice as a snack add extra flavor and nutrients by topping with raisins, fruit, honey, milk, butter, pecans, walnuts or apples. Leftover, warm brown rice can be enjoyed this way as a breakfast.

There are many uses for brown rice. For more information on healthy weight management visitwww.msue.msu.edu.

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visithttp://www.msue.msu.edu. To contact an expert in your area, visit http://expert.msue.msu.edu, or call 888MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).

Can Rice Sorters, Car Assembly Lines Inspire Mining Firms?

Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton Are Among Those Looking to Other Industries for Cost-Cutting Ideas Car-production lines and machinery that sorts rice could help companies such as Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton wring greater profits from mining.By Rhiannon Hoyle, Alex MacDonald BHP Billiton and Mitsubishi joint venture BMA's Goonyella Riverside coking coal mine in Queensland, Australia.

Rhiannon Hoyle/The Wall Street Journal PERTH, Australia—Global mining companies have scoured deserts, mountains and jungles for resources to rev up their profits. More recently, the search has taken them to a different environment: the factory floor.Car-

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production lines and machinery that sorts rice could help companies such as Rio Tinto PLC and BHP Billiton Ltd. wring greater profits from mining.

Whereas miners spent a decade spending billions on acquisitions and new projects, they are now taking an opposite approach—conserving cash while waiting for commodity prices to recover.The hills around Kennecott, Utah, are home to one of the world‘s biggest copper mines. Recently, Kennecott has also become the location of a machine the size of four London doubledecker buses that Rio Tinto hopes will cut down on the quantity of rocks that need to be crushed in search of copper.

The equipment is supplied by food processor Tomra Systems ASA, using technology it developed to sift everything from rice grains to scallops.―What the food guys did 30 years ago, I see [us applying] successfully into the mining business,‖ said John McGagh, head of innovation at Rio Tinto, one of the world‘s top five copper miners by output. ―Rice sorters can color-sort up to a million objects a second.‖When commodity prices started falling in late 2011, global miners responded by shutting pits, selling assets and laying off staff. Rio Tinto last year announced or completed sales of mines worth US$3.5 billion, and is using the proceeds to repay debts.With the obvious cutbacks already implemented, companies are looking further afield for technology and ideas—to the military, aerospace and automotive industries.

For Lucas Dow, president of the BMA coal alliance in Australia run by BHP Billiton and Mitsubishi Corp., this shift took him to a Toyota Motor Corp. plant just outside Nagoya, Japan. Iron ore is vital to make steel, a key raw material for Toyota‘s cars. But Mr. Dow was there on other business: to find ways of making mines thousands of miles away more efficient.―We‘re certainly looking outside of our own industry, and shamelessly stealing and implementing ideas where it is possible,‖ said Mr. Dow, who is based in Brisbane, Australia.He said he‘s taking on many ideas from Toyota, the company that rewrote the book on lean manufacturing with techniques like just-in-time inventory, designed to wring out efficiencies. He wants to run BMA‘s mines using simple, repeatable processes that can flow without hitting bottlenecks, like a car assembly line.

At Goonyella Riverside, BMA‘s largest mine, which produces steelmaking coal, an employee recently suggested setting up several Formula One-style pit stops around the more than 12-mile-long mine site to improve refueling of dump trucks, which haul some 300 tons of raw material at a time.That change came after Mr. Dow, praising the open communication between workers and management at Toyota, asked staff to provide feedback at the end of every shift.BMA has also held discussions with supplier Komatsu Ltd., a major Japanese

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equipment company, about using data analytics to keep its machinery running longer.BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto are using so-called big data to fine-tune maintenance schedules so that the engines in their US$5 million trucks can be replaced just in time, rather than as prescribed by the manufacturers.BMA has been looking at technology that enables mine managers to monitor truck engines remotely for problems—an idea borrowed from jet-engine makers Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC and Boeing Co. At Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.—which hopes to lift output from its Pilbara mines in northwest Australia by as much as 13% through improving productivity—managers say a modular building style traditionally used in the oil-and-gas sector saved time and money in the construction of the company‘s latest processing plant.Suppliers are also having to be more creative. Joe Mastrangelo, chief executive of General Electric Co.‘s power conversion unit, said miners have typically placed orders for new equipment with little dialogue. ―But what we have seen in the past 12 months are a lot more discussions with clients who ask: ‗What can you do to make me more efficient?‘‖ said Mr. Mastrangelo. ―Our job is to look for these solutions in other industries as mining recovers from its current capital expenditure downturn,‖ he said.At its Kennecott, Utah, mine, Rio Tinto crushes rocks the size of cars into fine powder to determine what should be kept. The process is costly, requiring lots of energy and water. Much of the crushed rock is simply tossed away.Rio Tinto says food-processing technology could be a big help. Tomra‘s equipment uses color sensors to sort rice into white and nonwhite grains, before pressurized air is fired at unwanted grains to get rid of them. Adapting the technology to sort rocks containing iron or copper from barren material could lower costs.According to Tomra, the technology could reject between 15% to 50% of rock before it is fully processed. It could also lower the mining industry‘s energy consumption by 15% and reduce the amount of water used by up to 1,050 gallons per ton of ore.―We wouldn‘t do it unless the numbers look big and they do,‖ said Rio Tinto innovation chief Mr. McGagh.

He declined to estimate the potential savings, or how much has been invested till now.So far, though, Rio Tinto hasn‘t been able to use Tomra‘s rice-sorting technology on a large enough scale. A machine in the Pilbara region was only able to process up to 150 tons of ore an hour, well short of volumes above 1,000 tons needed to make it viable. The Anglo-Australian miner hopes new trials at Kennecott will lead to a breakthrough.

Write to Rhiannon Hoyle at rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com and Alex MacDonald at alex.macdonald@wsj.com

Generating a genome to feed the world: UA-led team sequences African rice posted by news on july 28, 2014 - 9:30pm An international team of researchers led by the University of Arizona has sequenced the complete genome of African rice.The genetic information will enhance scientists' and agriculturalists' understanding of the growing

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patterns of African rice, as well as enable the development of new rice varieties that are better able to cope with increasing environmental stressors to help solve global hunger challenges.

The paper, "The genome sequence of African rice (Oryza glaberrima) and evidence for independent domestication," was published online in Nature Genetics on Sunday.The effort to sequence the African rice genome was led by Rod A. Wing, director of the Arizona Genomics Institute at the UA and the Bud Antle Endowed Chair in the School of Plant Sciences in the UA College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, with a joint appointment in the UA Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology."Rice feeds half the world, making it the most important food crop," Wing said. "Rice will play a key role in helping to solve what we call the 9 billion-people question."The 9 billion-people question refers to predictions that the world's population will increase to more than 9 billion people – many of whom will live in areas where access to food is extremely scarce – by the year 2050. The question lies in how to grow enough food to feed the world's population and prevent the host of health, economic and social problems associated with hunger and malnutrition.

Now, with the completely sequenced African rice genome, scientists and agriculturalists can search for ways to cross Asian and African species to develop new varieties of rice with the high-yield traits of Asian rice and the hardiness of African rice."African rice is once more at the forefront of cultivation strategies that aim to confront climate change and food availability challenges," said Judith Carney, a professor of geography at the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability at the University of California, Berkeley, and author of "Black Rice." The book describes the historical importance of African rice, which was brought to the United States during the period of transatlantic slavery.Carney is also a co-author on the Nature Genetics paper, and her book served as one of the inspirations behind sequencing the African rice genome."We're merging disciplines to solve the 9 billion-people question," Wing said.Although it is currently cultivated in only a handful of locations around the world, African rice is hardier and more resistant to environmental stress in West African environments than Asian varieties, Wing said.

African rice already has been crossed with Asian rice to produce new varieties under a group known as NERICA, which stands for New Rice for Africa.The African rice genome is especially important because many of the genes code for traits that make African rice resistant to environmental stress, such as long periods of drought, high salinity in the soils and flooding."Now that we have a precise knowledge of the genome we can identify these traits more easily and move genes more rapidly through conventional breeding methods, or through genetic modification techniques," noted Wing, who is also a member of the UA's BIO5 Institute and holds the Axa Endowed Chair of Genome Biology and Evolutionary Genomics at the International Rice Research Institute.

"The idea is to create a super-rice that will be higher yielding but will have less of an environmental impact – such as varieties that require less water, fertilizer and pesticides."Hardy, high-yield crops will become increasingly vital for human survival as the world faces the environmental effects of climate change and an

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ever-growing global population, he added.Wing's research group specializes in developing what geneticists call physical maps, a tool that enables scientists to understand the structure of the genome. His group developed the physical maps for Asian rice and donated it to the Rice Genome Project, making sequencing of that complete genome possible.Much of the evolutionary analysis of the genome was performed by Muhua Wang, a UA plant sciences doctoral candidate, and by Carlos Machado of the University of Maryland. Yeisoo Yu, a research associate professor in Wing's research group at the Arizona Genomics Institute, led the sequencing effort.In analyzing the 33,000 genes that make up the African rice genome, the researchers discovered that during the process of domestication, Africans and Asians independently selected for many of the same genetic traits in the two species, such as higher nutrition and traits that make harvesting the crop easier.

Additionally, the sequenced genome helps resolve questions about whether African rice originally was domesticated in one region or in several locations across Africa. By comparing the genome with what is known about the genetic structure of wild varieties, Wing and his team found that it's most similar to a population of wild rice species found in one location along the Niger River in Mali. "Our data supports the hypothesis that the domestication of African rice was centric in this region of Africa," Wing said.From 1998 to 2005, Wing led the U.S. effort to help sequence the genome of Asian rice, which is the only other domesticated rice species.

Those results were published in the journal Nature in 2005, and have since enabled the discovery of hundreds of agriculturally important genes, including genes that code for faster breeding cycles and the ability for the plant to survive for up to two weeks underwater during periods of flooding.Wing's research group is now focusing on sequencing and analyzing the genomes of the wild relatives of African and Asian rice. "By understanding the entire genus at a genome level we have a whole new pool of genetic variation that can be used to combat pests and plant pathogens," Wing explained.

One example, he said, would be adding disease resistance genes from all of the wild rice varieties to a species of cultivated rice, creating a new super-crop that is resistant to diseases and pests.Wing is also working with Quifa Zhang from Huazhong Agricultural University in Wuhan, China, to create a set of super-crop science and technology centers around the world, where focused and coordinated efforts could help solve the 9 billionpeople question. "We really only have about 25 years to solve this problem, and if we're always competing with each other it's not going to work," he said.

This image shows Hawa Sanneh holding freshly harvested African rice in Casamance, Senegal, in October 1987.

(Photo Credit: (Image copyright: Judith Carney))

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"After decades of promoting high-yielding Asian varieties, the emphasis now is on developing types that combine the former's higher yields with glaberrima's tolerance of environmental stress," Carney noted.

African Rice Sequenced: A Genome To Feed The World

By News Staff | July 28th 2014 05:29 PM | Credit: University of Arizona Researchers have sequenced the complete genome of Oryza glaberrima (African rice), which will enhance scientists' and agriculturalists' understanding of the growing patterns of African rice, as well as enable the development of new rice varieties that are better able to cope with increasing environmental stressors to help solve global hunger challenges.

In analyzing the 33,000 genes that make up the African rice genome, researchers discovered that during the process of domestication, Africans and Asians independently selected for many of the same genetic traits in the two species, such as higher nutrition and traits that make harvesting the crop easier.

"Rice feeds half the world, making it the most important food crop," said Rod A. Wing, director of the Arizona Genomics Institute at the University of Arizona, who led the effort. "Rice will play a key role in helping to solve what we call the 9 billion-people question."The 9 billion-people question refers to predictions that the world's population will increase to more than 9 billion people by the year 2050 and concerns that have existed since the 1960s that food will become a luxury for the rich. America alone can feed the world but not at a reasonable cost so the question lies in how to scientifically optimize plants so local people can control their own food.

With the completely sequenced African rice genome, scientists and agriculturalists can search for ways to cross Asian and African species to develop new varieties of rice with the high-yield traits of Asian rice and the hardiness of African rice."African rice is once more at the forefront of cultivation strategies that aim to confront climate change and food availability challenges," said Judith Carney, a professor of geography at the University

Daily Rice E-Newsletter by Rice Plus Magazine www.ricepluss.com News and R&D Section mujajhid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell # 92 321 369 2874

of California, Berkeley, and co-author of the paper."We're merging disciplines to solve the 9 billion-people question," Wing said.Although it is currently cultivated in only a handful of locations around the world, African rice is hardier and more resistant to environmental stress in West African environments than Asian varieties, Wing said.African rice already has been crossed with Asian rice to produce new varieties under a group known as NERICA, which stands for New Rice for Africa.

The African rice genome is especially important because many of the genes code for traits that make African rice resistant to environmental stress, such as long periods of drought, high salinity in the soils and flooding."Now that we have a precise knowledge of the genome we can identify these traits more easily and move genes more rapidly through conventional breeding methods, or through genetic modification techniques," noted Wing. "The idea is to create a super-rice that will be higher yielding but will have less of an environmental impact – such as varieties that require less water, fertilizer and pesticides.

"Hardy, high-yield crops will become increasingly vital for human survival as the world faces the environmental effects of climate change and an ever-growing global population, he added.Much of the evolutionary analysis of the genome was performed by Muhua Wang, a University of Arizona plant sciences doctoral candidate, and by Carlos Machado of the University of Maryland. Yeisoo Yu, a research associate professor in Wing's research group at the Arizona Genomics Institute, led the sequencing effort.The sequenced genome helps resolve questions about whether African rice originally was domesticated in one region or in several locations across Africa.

By comparing the genome with what is known about the genetic structure of wild varieties, Wing and his team found that it's most similar to a population of wild rice species found in one location along the Niger River in Mali. "Our data supports the hypothesis that the domestication of African rice was centric in this region of Africa," Wing said.From 1998 to 2005, Wing led the U.S. effort to help sequence the genome of Asian rice, which is the only other domesticated rice species. Those results were published in the journal Nature in 2005, and have since enabled the discovery of hundreds of agriculturally important genes, including genes that code for faster breeding cycles and the ability for the plant to survive for up to two weeks underwater during periods

Daily Rice E-Newsletter by Rice Plus Magazine www.ricepluss.com News and R&D Section mujajhid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell # 92 321 369 2874

of flooding.Wing's research group is now focusing on sequencing and analyzing the genomes of the wild relatives of African and Asian rice.

"By understanding the entire genus at a genome level we have a whole new pool of genetic variation that can be used to combat pests and plant pathogens," Wing explained.One example, he said, would be adding disease resistance genes from all of the wild rice varieties to a species of cultivated rice, creating a new super-crop that is resistant to diseases and pests.Wing is also working with Quifa Zhang from Huazhong Agricultural University in Wuhan, China, to create a set of super-crop science and technology centers around the world, where focused and coordinated efforts could help solve the 9 billion-people question.

"We really only have about 25 years to solve this problem, and if we're always competing with each other it's not going to work," he said. "After decades of promoting high-yielding Asian varieties, the emphasis now is on developing types that combine the former's higher yields with glaberrima's tolerance of environmental stress," Carney noted.

Article: "The genome sequence of African rice (Oryza glaberrima) and evidence for independent domestication" Nature Genetics. Source: University of Arizona

Customs intercepts 23 vehicles loaded with 2,446 bags of rice in Oyo Monday, 28 July 2014 15:44 Written by Iyabo Lawal, Ibadan TO discourage the unwholesome practice of importing products and goods that could be produced locally, the federal government has been asked to support indigenous manufacturers with policies and enabling environment to increase their production capacity. The call was made by the President and Chief Executive of Erisco Foods Limited, makers of Ric-Giko Tomato paste, Chief Eric Umeofia when the Minister of Trade, Commerce and Industry, Olusegun Aganga paid a working visit to its Oregun factory, in Ikeja, Lagos state on Tuesday. The minister undertook a tour of the state-of-the art processing and packaging facilities of the company.

Leading the minister on the tour, Umeofia explained that the company‘s 200,000 tonnes per annum capacity production plant, which has a canning line with five varieties of sizes and sachets, will contribute immensely to

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local processing of fresh tomato paste. He said Erisco had plans afoot to begin massive cultivation of tomatoes in Jigawa, Kano and other states, complete with ideal storage facilities to adequately keep the processing plants busy at all times. This, he said, would give support to the industry and the implementation of the backward integration programme of the federal government. He observed that Erisco Foods‘ production capacity would also enable genuine importers, packagers and bulk traders of tomato paste to start getting the product without the pains of procuring exchange from Europe and Asia.

Umeofia, who received the Minister along with his management team and bankers, including the managing director of Keystone Bank, Mr. Philip Ikeazor, top management of Stanbic IBTC bank and key consultants, however, told the minister that it had become imperative for government to begin to support indigenous manufacturers if the nation is to become less-dependent on importation. Citing supportive loans as an instance, Umeofia noted that the process of getting loans is yet too rigorous. He lamented the extent of resources and money being deployed into importing tomatoes, stating that importers of the product are being economical with the truth regarding the gross cost of importation in order to keep the trend of indiscriminate importation. He opined that with support from government, indigenous manufactures would easily provide home-grown alternatives and quickly fill any gaps. ―Indigenous manufacturers especially in the Eastern part of Nigeria are ready to help develop this nation.

We are ready to help the economy like we are doing now; just a little push from the government, we would make Nigeria self-sufficient in tomato production,‖ Umeofia said. ―We however need a policy that will encourage Nigerians to patronize local goods like tomatoes. If you keep giving Nigerians the opportunity, they will keep going to import because it has become a psychological thing that imported materials are the best and which is not true,‖ he added. Responding, the minister explained that the government, through its National Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) is creating an enabling environment to support and encourage local enterprise that will stimulate local production of goods and services.

He expressed delight at the Erisco production initiative, describing it as the first of its kind and also the biggest in Africa, adding that the cultivation of home-grown resources by the company makes it more special. ―What‘s so special about this is that your tomatoes will be home-grown from Jigawa, Kano and the rest of Nigeria in due course. You are empowering inclusive industrial development; right from the farming to the processing, the manufacturing and the packaging. So the job creation opportunity is very high. It‘s a sort of area the government will be very delighted to support,‖ he said. Aganga promised that government will put in place policies and programmes that will ensure that investors like Erisco Foods not just survive but succeed abundantly. He noted that appropriate tariff policies would be introduced to ensure that local manufacturers are able to sell their products while ensuring that the country does not become a dumping ground for smuggled alternatives. Aganga also assured that government would look into the importation of tomatoes and make all necessary arrangements, which will benefit the local manufacturers in no long time.

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