Prices of paddy, rice climb as summer-autumn crop ends in Mekong Delta

Currently, the prices of paddy and rice are both increasing thanks to the smooth export of rice and the positive impacts of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).

Enterprises prepare the source of rice for export.

Farmers in the Mekong Delta are deliriously delighted as the prices of paddy surge at the end of the summer-autumn rice crop.

On August 25, the price of paddy rose by VND400 per kilogram compared to the beginning of this month. Specifically, farmers sold fresh paddy at the field at the price, varying from VND5,500 per kilogram to VND6,500 per kilogram, depending on rice varieties.

Noticeably, many farmers and granaries capable of storing rice hit a jackpot when stockpiling Jasmine 85 fragrant rice variety, because the price of paddy has jumped from VND7,500 per kilogram to VND8,200 per kilogram. In the summer-autumn rice crop this year, the Mekong Delta has produced 1.54 million hectares of rice with an estimated production of about 9 million tons of rice.

According to the Vietnam Food Association, Vietnam's rice export prices are fairly good. Specifically, the price of 5-percent broken rice in Vietnam is at US$480-$490 per ton, an increase of $2-$3 per ton compared to that at the beginning of the month. According to enterprises in the Mekong Delta, because it has entered the end of the summer-autumn rice crop, the supply of rice has become lower, and the domestic traders have increased buying recently.

Traders buy paddy from farmers.

According to Pham Thai Binh, Director of Trung An Company, currently, the prices of paddy and rice have increased as the export market is good. Moreover, the EVFTA, which just took effect from August 1, has had positive impacts on the rice industry. The company's target is to export 80,000 tons of high-quality fragrant rice this year. The company's export prices of fragrant rice currently reach an average of $700 - $900 per ton.

Due to the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, the current global logistics is interrupted. Rice experts said that the current concern of rice importing countries is the delivery. Accordingly, prompt delivery and logistics add more value to the purchase. Logistics and delivery or reception capacity have become important factors in shaping the current rice demand.