3rd february,2015 daily global rice e newsletter by riceplus magazine

Daily

Global

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

Rice E-Newsletter February 03 , 2015 V o l u m e 5, Issue I

Rice exports increase 3.5pc in six months Tuesday, 03 February 2015 15:29 Posted by Parvez Jabri

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 1

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine ISLAMABAD Rice exports increased by 3.46 percent during the first half of the current fiscal year compared to the corresponding period of last year.According to data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the rice exports were recorded at $976.784 from July-December (2014-15) compared to the exports of $944.077 in July-December (2013-14), showing an increase of 3.46 percent.

Among the rice commodities, the exports of basmati rice increased by 2.63 percent by going up from $294.517 million last year to $302.265 during the first six months of the current fiscal year.The exports of all other rice commodities increased by 3.84 percent during the period under review as it went up from $649.560 million last year to $674.519 million in the current year, the PBS data revealed.Meanwhile, on year-on-year basis, the over all exports of rice witnessed negative growth of 9.17 percent in December 2014 compared to the exports of December 2013.The rice exports in December 2014 were recorded at $238.179 million compared to the exports of $262.219 million in December 2013.

On month-on-month basis, the rice exports in December witnessed increase of 7.68 percent when compare to the exports of $221.197 million in November 2014.Among the rice commodities, the exports of basmati rice decreased by 27.10 and 3.29 percent in December 2014 compared to December 2013 and November 2014 respectively.Similarly, the exports of other rice commodities decreased by 3.69 percent when compared to the exports of December 2014 and increased by 10.58 percent when compared to November 2014, the PBS data revealed.

It is pertinent to mention here that the overall exports from the country during the first six months of the current fiscal year were recorded at $12.073 billion compared to the exports of $12.617 billion during the corresponding period of last year, showing negative growth of 4.31 percent.On the other hand, the imports into the country increased by 11.68 percent during the first half of the current fiscal year by going up from $21.671 billion in July-December (2013-14) to $24.203 billion in July-December (2014-15).

Copyright APP (Associated Press of Pakistan), 2015

http://www.brecorder.com/top-news/1-front-top-news/221822-rice-exports-increase-35pc-in-six-months.html

Chinese Firm Joins Local Rice Miller to Bolster Industry

By KYAW HSU MON / THE IRRAWADDY| Tuesday, February 3, 2015

RANGOON — A Burmese rice milling company and the Chinese firm CAMC Engineering Co. Ltd. have signed a joint venture Memorandum of Understanding to improve the quality and capacity of rice milling operations in Burma, according to Thaung Win, the secretary of the Myanmar Rice Millers Association.Members of the Myanmar Rice Millers Association formed

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 2

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine the Myanmar Rice Mill Company in 2012 with the aim of supporting the development of Burma‟s rice milling industry.

Both the Myanmar Rice Mill Company and its Chinese partner enter into the joint venture aiming to boost Burmese rice exports, in part by improving the quality of its rice as well as the milling process. “It [the Myanmar Rice Millers Association] is only a nonprofit organization so we can‟t do it [joint ventures] directly, that‟s why rice millers formed the company—so that they can work with foreign companies,” said Thaung Win, who is also the director of the Myanmar Rice Mill Company.

“We‟re going to discuss the details of how we can form the JV company in line with the Myanmar Investment Commission‟s rules,” he told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, adding that the MoU was signed late last month.Under the terms of the MoU, the joint venture will also provide loans to rice millers and work to upgrade rice storage facilities that currently leave a large portion of the nation‟s harvest susceptible to spoilage through exposure to humidity and other elements, Thaung Win said.“If we can form the JV, we will invest equal shares and we can support local rice millers.

That will include loans, technical support and rice quality control,” he said.“As we have very old mills in our country, we need technical improvements from foreign investors. We do expect that if we can control the quality of rice, the price of exported rice will also increase,” Thaung Win said.According to a World Bank report in June, Burma could greatly increase its agricultural exports if it improves the quality of rice by investing in the expansion and upgrade of domestic rice mills.

The report said that since economic and political reforms began in 2011, rice exports have significantly risen, but in the past two years export volumes have leveled off at about 1.3 million tons annually.The World Bank said much of the rice grown in Burma is of low quality and unfit for export to high-value markets such as the European Union, where Burmese products are exempt from import tariffs under a preferential trade scheme linked to Burma‟s “least developed country” status.

Chit Khine, chairman of the Myanmar Rice Federation, said he welcomed the MoU.“Chinese companies have been very interested to work in the rice industry for years, CAMC has also worked here for years. That‟s why they have mutual understanding and believe they can improve

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 3

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine the rice industry,” Chit Khine said.“If we compare the quality of mills here and in Thailand, it‟s quite different. We only have very low-quality mills in Myanmar,” he said.

The Myanmar Agribusiness Public Co. Ltd. (MAPCO), whose chairman is Chit Khine, is also working with a foreign firm to improve the rice industry‟s competitiveness, entering into a joint venture with Japan‟s Mitsubishi to build more rice mills, improve quality control measures and increase exports.According to Myanmar Rice Millers Association figures, there are more than 2,000 mills nationwide, most of which operate at a capacity of 30 tons to 50 tons per day, with few mills capable of outputting at the 200- to 300-ton level that is typical of more competitive rice exporters.

Burma‟s agriculture sector is the country‟s largest employer and 70 percent of all Burmese live in rural areas, but under the previous military regime agricultural productivity languished and rice exports fell sharply compared with the 1960s.Image: Workers at a rice mill in the town of Kyaiklat in Irrawaddy Division take a break from the day‟s labor in May 2012. (Photo: Reuters)

http://www.irrawaddy.org/business/chinese-firm-joins-local-rice-miller-bolster-industry.html

Japan Announces 7th SBS Tender in FY 2014 Announcement: 3 February 2015 Tender: 17 February 2015 Quantity: Total Whole-kernel (brown or milled) Broken (milled) Shipping period: 15 August 2015

30,000 MT 27,000 MT 3,000 MT

USA Rice Federation

CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures CME Group (Preliminary): Closing Rough Rice Futures for February 3

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 4

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

Month

Price

Net Change

March 2015

$10.385

+ $0.080

May 2015

$10.645

+ $0.090

July 2015

$10.900

+ $0.110

September 2015

$10.750

+ $0.160

November 2015

$10.920

+ $0.160

January 2016

$11.010

+ $0.160

March 2016

$11.010

+ $0.160

USA Rice federation

Rice Update Indonesia: In Search of Rice Self-Sufficiency

03 February 2015 |Indonesia Investments Subjects |Rice Self-Sufficiency, Winarno Tohir, KTNA, Farmers and Fishermen's Society, Rice Import, Rice Consumption,Rice Production, Rice Price, Rice Industry, Joko Widodo, Farmers, Bulog, Raskin, Poverty, Rice The price of rice in several Indonesian regions has risen by between 17 to 23 percent to IDR 8,500-9,000 per kilogram as rice production at the start of the year has not been able to meet rice demand. In January 2015, Indonesian rice production stood at 2 million tons, whereas demand reached 2.5 million tons. Inflation of rice is a sensitive issue in Indonesia because it jeopardizes declining poverty rates as poorer segments of Indonesian society spend over half of their total disposable income on food items, primarily rice.

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 5

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine Winarno Tohir, Chairman of the Farmers and Fishermen's Society (KTNA), said that domestic rice prices soared at the start of the year not only due to reduced output in January (partly the result of floods in harvest areas) but also because the central government stopped distributing subsidized rice to the poor (through itsRaskin program) in November.

This program was stopped by President Joko Widodo, who assumed office in October 2014, as it was estimated that about 30 percent of the subsidized rice went missing before it could reach the 16 million poorest Indonesian families. A preliminary investigation conducted by the country‟s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) signalled that state agency Bulog, which managed the annual USD $1.7 billion Raskin program, did not run the program efficiently. To support the poorest Indonesian families, the government now sends electronic money (e-money) to the families‟ bank accounts.

However, Tohir said that current price pressures will ease starting from mid-February as rice production is expected to touch 3.6 million tons this month. Rice production will further improve in March and April as almost all Indonesian regions enter the harvest season. Therefore Tohir does not believe that the government should intervene in the market to push rice prices down.

Rice Production Indonesia:

Indonesian Production¹

¹ numbers ²

Rice

are

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

60.3

64.4

66.4

65.4

69.1

71.3

70.6²

73.4²

in

millions

of

unmilled

indicates

Sources: Food and Agriculture Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture

tons

of

a

Organization

of

rice forecast

the

United

Nations

and

Reportedly, Indonesia holds the world‟s largest per capita rice consumption at about 140 kilograms of rice per person per year. Therefore, it is not surprizing that Southeast Asia‟s largest economy is eager to reach self-sufficiency in consumption of this staple food crop (only having succeeded in the mid-1980s and 2008-2009).

The current Joko Widodo administration has the ambitious target to reach rice self-sufficiency by 2017 through providing subsidized fertilizers and seeds to Indonesian farmers and by rehabilitating one million hectares of tertiary irrigation channels for paddy production, but also

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 6

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine by raising the government rice purchasing price (HPP) by roughly 10 percent to IDR 7,260 per kilogram in January 2015.

Through this higher price, Indonesian rice farmers generate more income and are protected from low market prices. The central government targets to increase domestic rice production by 4 percent to 73.4 million tons from an estimated 70.6 million tons last year. If this target is met, then there will be no need for rice imports from Vietnam and Thailand. Last year, Bulog still needed to import about 425,000 tons of rice to meet domestic demand. According to information from the Indonesian Trade Ministry, Bulog currently holds 1.4 million tons of (commercial) rice reserves, an amount which is sufficient for up to six months.

Poverty in Indonesia Relative and absolute poverty have declined steadily in Indonesia over the past decade. Based on the latest data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) there were a total of 27.73 million Indonesians categorized as poor, or 10.96 percent of the total population, in September 2014.

Indonesian Poverty and Inequality Statistics:

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

Relative Poverty (% of population)

17.8

16.6

15.4

14.2

13.3

12.5

11.7

11.5

11.0

Absolute Poverty (in millions)

39

37

35

33

31

30

29

29

28

-

0.35

0.35

0.37

0.38

0.41

0.41

0.41

-

Gini Coefficient/ Gini Ratio

Sources: World Bank and Statistics Indonesia

http://www.indonesia-investments.com/news/todays-headlines/rice-update-indonesia-in-search-of-riceself-sufficiency/item5277

PHL hybrid rice being studied for Papua New Guinea cultivation www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 7

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

A PAPUA NEW GUINEA coffee company is testing hybrid rice from the Philippines for cultivation in that country.

Tropical rice hybrids are seen as a sustainable way to boost yields. -- BW File Photo Hybrid rice producer SL Agritech Corp. said in a statement yesterday that PNG Coffee Ltd. wants to pioneer commercial production of hybrid rice in its home country.Frisco M. Malabanan, a consultant of SL Agritech, said “PNG Coffee Ltd is a coffee exporter and has vast tracts of land” in Papua New Guinea.L Agritech said that a private New Guinea company is already conducting a pilot test on growing various hybrid seeds.Village Garden PNG Ltd. opened a demonstration farm for interested Papua New Guinea parties.

“We have already created massive awareness in PNG for hybrid rice. What we are proving is that based on results, the rice can be grown there,” Mr. Malabanan said.“Some importers have been saying the rice can‟t grow in PNG, but we‟re proving them wrong. Our rice grains are already filled,” he added.Harvest of the pilot crops will be done in March, while yield is expected to reach at least seven metric tons per hectare.Apart from PNG Coffee, government officials particularly from Papua New Guinea‟s East Sepik province are also expressing interest in rice production.

Joseph Yopy Yopy, board member of the Wosera Gawik district, has visited the farm.The province has 200,000 to 250,000 hectares of land that may potentially be planted to hybrid rice.SL Agritech Chairman Henry Lim Bon Liong noted that this makes the Philippines a contributor to Papua New Guinea‟s agriculture sector.“We are happy that the Philippines is becoming a part of the history of agriculture and rice sector in a country like PNG that really needs to have a rice supply of its own,” said Mr. Lim.

SL Agritech said that land in PNG is barely touched by modern agriculture so rice may still be grown organically or with little fertilizer.“The hybrid rice planting is also combining efficient agriculture technologies with the „sprinkler‟ irrigation system that substantially saves on water,” SL Agritech said, noting that the system was adapted from Australia.Unlike the Philippines, PNG does not have national irrigation systems but it has source of fresh water from many rivers.“PNG has been noting the significant contribution that the Philippines is making to its rice sector despite the fact that it has its own National Agricultural Research Institute,” SL Agritech said.

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 8

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=Economy&title=phl-hybrid-rice-being-studied-for-papua-newguinea-cultivation&id=102053

EPA and Corps Withdraw WOTUS Interpretive Rule WASHINGTON, DC -- Yielding to heavy criticism from farm groups, as well as government personnel trying to operate under the rule, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers have withdrawn The Interpretive Rule, a controversial list of agricultural conservation practices that would be exempted from the proposed Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule. Both agencies signed a memorandum of understanding on January 29 that immediately withdrew the rule. The Interpretive Rule was released as a final rule in March 2014 along with the proposed WOTUS rule. Publicized as non-controversial, The Interpretive Rule listed 56 conservation practices that, if completed to Natural Resources Conservation Service standards, would be exempt from Clean Water Act permitting requirements.

"Unfortunately the list left out many practices, including several used by rice producers, and ostensibly added what many farmers consider to be normal farming practices, such as fencing and brush clearing, to the list," said Ben Mosely, vice president of government affairs for the USA Rice Federation, which had also been critical of the rule. "While the withdrawal of The Interpretive Rule is a step in the right direction, we now turn our attention to the proposed WOTUS rule itself that seeks to clarify and expand the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act." WOTUS is expected to be published as a final rule in March or April of 2015, and Mosely said USA Rice has significant concerns, particularly with regard to the rule's proposed regulation of irrigation ditches and canals, as well as making any water in a flood plain jurisdictional water requiring permits to work in.

Contact: Steve Hensley (703) 236-1445 USA Rice Federation

Crop Insurance Programs Targeted in New Obama Budget Proposal WASHINGTON, DC -- Yesterday President Obama released his proposed fiscal year 2016 budget, which was slated as a means to provide tax breaks for the middle class and increase

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 9

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine spending on government programs, with spending cuts and tax increases just sufficient to control the nation's deficit. Among the areas targeted for cuts in the agricultural community was the new crop insurance program.

The President's budget cuts nearly $16 billion from crop insurance over the next ten years, mostly through premium subsidy reductions for revenue policies including harvest price options.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack supports the President's recommendation and attributes the need to cut crop insurance to falling commodity prices and the realization that the 2014 Farm Bill will likely be more expensive than originally thought."I'm taking a look at the next 12 to 18 months and what we see is clearly the possibility that payouts could be $1 [billion] to $1.5 billion higher than anticipated," Vilsack said.

With commodity prices low throughout the United States, Representative Mike Conaway (R-TX), chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, called the Obama budget an "ill-timed proposal" that would "jeopardize the ability of producers to insure their crops in a climate of collapsing crop prices."USA Rice Federation Rice Producers' Group Chairman John Owen echoed Conaway's sentiment, saying "Looking for budget savings through additional cuts to crop insurance programs not only jeopardizes the individual farmer's economic viability, it impacts the food security of our country."

Contact: Evan Spencer (703) 236-1476

Vietnam to export 240,000 tons of rice to Malaysia Thanh Nien News Farm hands harvest rice outside the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho. Photo credit: Bloomberg Japanese rice brings prosperity, stability to Vietnam farmers

Vietnam's rice subsidies benefit foreign consumers, not local producers: experts Vietnam will sell 240,000 tons of five-percent-broken rice to Malaysia, local media reported Tuesday.The rice will begin arriving in April, according to Lam Anh Tuan, director of Thinh Phat Company.The firm, based in the Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre, is one of many that will help fill the contract. Tuan told Thoi Bao Kinh Te Saigon Online that the recent deal would prove more lucrative than prior foreign contracts, but declined to disclose specific numbers.Oryza, an international journal on rice science, cited unidentified Vietnamese exporters as estimating that the deal was struck at around US$385 per ton.

Vietnamâ€&#x;s five-percent broken rice price hit roughly $360 per ton toward the end of last week, compared to $405 per ton being paid for Thai rice, $400 per ton being paid for Indian rice, $415

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 10

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine per ton for Burmese rice, and $360 per ton for Pakistani rice, according to Oryza.Traders in the Mekong Delta said the deal was unlikely to help increase the price of Vietnamese rice given how small the deal is and that it is expected to take eight months to complete.Malaysia ranked as Vietnam's third-biggest rice buyer in 2014 after China and the Philippines.The nation bought 470,000 tons of Vietnamese rice last year. http://www.thanhniennews.com/business/vietnam-to-export-240000-tons-of-rice-to-malaysia38356.html

Rice Federation Votes, Approves Export Fee

BY KANG SOTHEAR | FEBRUARY 3, 2015

The newly formed Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF) voted Monday to require its members pay an export fee of $0.50 per ton of long-grain white rice and $1 per ton of fragrant rice in order to raise money for educating farmers and marketing Cambodian rice overseas, according to Sok Puthyvuth, the federation‟s president.“Finally our members decided on the fee. After this, we will prepare plans and programs,” Mr. Puthyvuth said.

He said CRF needs $777,000 to implement its “action plan,” which includes television advertisements, coordinating seed production and raising awareness about potential crop issues.“Previously when we had ideas, we always needed to ask for help from other organizations, which makes our work slow because we needed to wait for…approvals,” Mr. Puthyvuth said.un Yeng, secretary-general of CRF, said about 25 to 30 percent of the money would be used for CRF operations, including staff salaries, while the rest would be used to develop an international market for rice exporters. “[M]ostly, we will use the funds to help push the sale of rice,” he said.Last year, rice exports reached 387,061 tons, well short of the government‟s goal of exporting 1 million tons this year. sothear@cambodiadaily.com Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that CRF members would be required to pay $0.75 per ton for both long-grain white rice and fragrant rice. https://www.cambodiadaily.com/business/rice-federation-votes-approves-export-fee-77253/

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 11

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

World Rice Production 2014/2015 January 2015 This month the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that the World Rice Production 2014/2015 will be 475.47 million metric tons, around 0.23 million tons more than the previous month's projection.

Rice Production last year (*) was 476.96 million tons. This year's 475.47 estimated million tons could represent a decrease of 1.49 million tons or a 0.31% in rice production around the globe.

Rice Production by Country (Values in Metric Tons) China: 144,500,000 India: 102,000,000 Others: 38,459,000 Indonesia: 36,500,000 Bangladesh: 34,600,000 Vietnam: 28,250,000 Thailand: 20,500,000 Philippines: 12,200,000 Burma: 12,150,000 Brazil: 8,300,000 Japan: 7,700,000 United States: 7,068,000 Pakistan: 6,500,000 Cambodia: 4,900,000 Egypt: 4,500,000 Korea, South: 4,240,000 Nepal: 3,100,000 Next Update will be February 10, 2015. https://www.worldriceproduction.com/?gclid=CLex8L-NyMMCFdMatAodREQARQ

Politics No More Foreign Rice,Tomato in Nigeria If Buhari Becomes President Discussion in 'Political News' started by Jules, Yesterday at 8:35 AM. Muhammadu Buhari, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC has promised to stop importation of rice and tomato if elected President of Nigeria; PUNCH reports. Buhari made the promise in a meeting with the Organised Private Sector in Lagos. The ban he said is to

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 12

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine enhance local production of the products.''How can Nigeria be importing virtually everything? How can we be importing even tomatoes? If I am elected, basic items like rice and tomatoes, which we have the capacity to produce, will be banned from being imported'', Buhari said. The investors meeting had all the key members of the APC in attendance and was hosted by the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola.

#Fashola #APC #Lagos #Buhari http://www.nigerianbulletin.com/threads/no-more-foreign-rice-tomato-in-nigeria-if-buhari-becomespresident.107459/

Thai Rice Exporters Expect Exports To Drop To 10 Mln Tonnes This Year BANGKOK, Feb 3 (Bernama) -- The Thai Rice Exporters Association (TREA) expects this year's rice exports to drop to 10 million tonnes, worth US$4.95 billion, compared with 11.06 million tonnes, valued at US$5.43 billion, exported in 2014.The lower exports was due to increased competitiveness in the rice market, fluctuation in the exchange rate and lack of clear strategies to increase development of Thai rice, said TREA President Chareon Laothammatas.

He said the price of Thai rice was still high compared with that offered by other rice exporters and buyers had a wide variety to choose from Myanmar and Cambodia.The strengthening baht and the weakening of other currencies has also resulted in the price of Thai rice increasing US$25 per tonne in January.He expressed concern that countries like Nigeria, which usually buy rice from Thailand, may turn to other rice producers to source their supply.

-- BERNAMA http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v7/bu/newsbusiness.php?id=1105922

Several negative factors face rice exports this year, industry group says PETCHANET PRATRUANGKRAI THE NATION February 4, 2015 1:00 am

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 13

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine WITH no monetary policy to facilitate exports, higher competition among rice-exporting countries and a lack of development in the rice industry to lower production costs, Thai rice shipments will face a tougher time in the coming years, despite the plan to release huge quantities from government stocks."Thailand's rice will face a tougher export market due to higher competition, fluctuating exchange rates and no clear strategy to increase development of Thai rice," Charoen Laothamatas, president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association (TREA), said yesterday.

The association expects Thailand to ship out 10 million tonnes of rice valued at US$4.95 billion (Bt160 billion) this year, falling from last year's 11.06 million tonnes worth $5.43 billion.Thai rice is still expensive, while the market has a greater variety of sources to choose from, including Myanmar and Cambodia.The government should put in place a monetary policy to facilitate the export sector, since the baht's volatility has handicapped Thai rice sales in the global market, Charoen said.While the baht is strengthening, other countries are taking measures to weaken their currencies.

Thai rice has gone up by $25 per tonne, because of the baht appreciating from 33 to 32.20 against the US dollar last month.With fluctuating currencies and lower oil prices, some countries will shun Thailand and turn to cheap rice from other sources, he said.

Nigeria, which is the Kingdom's largest rice customer, could switch to India or other countries because the price of Thai rice has skyrocketed, while Nigerians have lower purchasing power because of the low price of oil, a key export commodity in that West African country.Korbsook Iamsuri, honorary president of the association, said the government should closely monitor currencies and focus on weakening the exchange rate, since exports are still the country's major economic engine.

High production costs To raise Thai export competitiveness, weakening the currency would help, as well as lowering the interest rate to help small traders. With high production costs, Thailand's rice-export competency will continue to drop, she said.In the latest study by the Agriculture Ministry, the cost of |production for the main rice crop was Bt10,800 per tonne and for |the second crop Bt9,100, while the market price is about Bt8,500. Vietnam's production cost is Bt3,500Bt4,000.The TREA called for long-term and sustainable measures to help lower the production costs for farmers.

For this year, it sees Thailand continuing to be the world's largest rice exporter, as it has plenty of inventory, while its price is not too high now that the elected government has been overthrown and its subsidy measure has ended.Besides negative factors, some positive factors for Thai rice exports are droughts, which will cause rice output to fall 30 per cent for this year's second crop, and government-to-government deals.On average, Thai 5-per-cent white rice will be quoted at $405 per tonne. www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 14

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine This could be marked up or down slightly this year on swings in the baht's value. The comparable price in Vietnam is about $355, while India's rice is $380.However, the TREA anticipates that the government will be able to release only about 3 million tonnes of rice from its stocks, which would be much lower than the target of 10 million tonnes.

Chookiat Ophaswongse, honorary president of the TREA, said the government would not be able to release huge volumes as expected because of tougher competition in the market, while the export sector would not grow as strongly as last year.According to the US Department of Agriculture, Vietnam is expected to export 6.7 million tonnes this year, up from 6.5 million tonnes in 2014. India is projected to export 8.7 million tonnes, down from 10.5 million tonnes.

China will still be the world's largest importer, buying about 4.3 million tonnes of rice this year from overseas, up from 3.9 million tonnes last year.Next will be Nigeria with 3.5 |million tonnes, up from 3 million tonnes last year, and the Philippines with 1.7 million tonnes, the same as last year. http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Several-negative-factors-face-rice-exports-this-ye-30253308.html

Nigeria: 120,000 Rice Farmers to Receive Ges Fertiliser in Kano Kano--No fewer than 120, 000 rice farmers in Kano State are to receive subsidised fertiliser for irrigation from the Federal Government under the Growth Enhancement Scheme, GES.Alhaji Garba Bichi, the Secretary of All Farmers Association of Nigeria, AFAN, made this known yesterday in Kano in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN. Bichi said the distribution of the assorted fertilisers and seeds had commenced in 48 designated redemption centres across the 44 local government areas of the state.

According to him, each farmer will have two bags of NPK and a bag of Urea fertilizer, as well as 25kg of rice seed at the subsidized rate of N9,000."The distribution will commence today (Monday) at all the redemption centres in the state on receipt of short message service alert on their handsets", he said.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201502030936.html

www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

Page 15

Contact for Newsletter Advertisement mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell : +92 321 3692774