Global rice trade, particularly in Vietnam’s traditional markets, is anticipated to remain robust this year. However, competition is expected to intensify with India’s potential re-entry into global rice markets. A pickup in demand International organizations have forecasted that global rice trade will continue growing, driven largely by strong demand from Vietnam’s key markets. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said in its July 2024 rice outlook report that the global rice trade forecast for 2024 has been revised up by 500,000 tons to 55.3 million tons. The forecast for 2025 also remains high at 54.3 million tons. In its July 2024 grain market report, the International Grains Council (IGC) predicted global rice trade for the 2024/2025 season at 53 million tons, an increase of one million tons against its earlier forecast. The USDA highlighted that rice imports by the Philippines—a key market for Vietnamese rice—are expected to pick up this year following a reduction in the most-favored-nation (MFN) import tariff from 35% to 15% both within and outside the quota. In the first five months of 2024, the Philippines imported around 2.3 million tons of rice, with around 1.8 million tons of it coming from Vietnam. Indonesia, another key market […]