Indonesia’s selection of Vietnam as a major source for its rice purchases has further solidified the position and quality of Vietnamese rice, said the Vietnamese Trade Office in Indonesia following a statement from an Indonesian official that Indonesia will import 1.5 million tonnes of rice from Vietnam and Thailand, VNA reported.

The office said that Vietnamese rice is known for its reliability and has earned the trust of the Indonesian Government and consumers in the context that the country is facing a shortfall in domestic food production due to the impact of the El Nino phenomenon.

Illustrative image. Photo: AFP

To make the most of this opportunity, the Vietnamese rice exporters should keep track of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s instructions regarding rice export to Indonesia. Specifically, rice exporters should proactively monitor market conditions, thoroughly assess opportunities and risks, and build trading plans.

The Indonesia Logistics Bureau Preum Bulog said all the necessary licenses for the import of 1.5 million tonnes of rice have been issued by the relevant Indonesian authorities, and the import is set to commence as early as the end of October 2023.

According to statistics released by the General Department of Vietnam Customs on October 10, Vietnam exported a total of 884,177 tonnes of rice to Indonesia in the first nine months of this year, with a total value of USD 462 million, marking respective year-on-year 17.7-fold and 19.2-fold increases.

During the period, Vietnam’s exports to Indonesia hit USD 3.79 billion, up 11% from the same period last year.

Last week, on October 9, the Indonesian government will increase imports as a solution to curb price hikes of food, especially corn, sugar, and rice, President Joko Widodo stated at a cabinet meeting.

Talking to the media after the meeting, Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan said the prices of sugar and corn were gradually increasing given the current global situation, such as conflicts and El Nino phenomena.

He said that Indonesia will import 250,000 tonnes of corn for the animal feed industry. Meanwhile, it will wait for prices to decrease before deciding to import sugar.

Sugar importers only register to import about 30% of the total allocated sugar import quota, he added.

According to September data from Statistics Indonesia, the price of ready-to-mill dried unhusked rice reached 7,386 IDR, or 0.47 USD per kg, marking a 9.3% increase from the previous month.

The government is also cooperating with several countries to purchase rice if needed, he said. The Southeast Asian nation has planned to import an additional 1.5 million tonnes to increase its national rice reserves, which stood at only 1.7 million tonnes as of October 6.

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