Thailand Maintains Position as the Second Largest Rice Exporter Worldwide
Published on: July 3, 2024.
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Thailand’s Rice Exports Experience Growth but Expectations Decrease in Q3 2024
Thailand, the world’s second-largest rice exporter, has seen a significant increase in rice exports during the first five months of 2024. According to the President of the Thai Rice Exporters Association (TREA), Charoen Laothamatas, exports have grown by 16.5% year on year, reaching nearly 4.06 million tonnes valued at 94.6 billion THB (2.6 billion USD). However, it is expected that exports in the third quarter of the year will decline compared to the first half.
In May, there was a notable drop in rice exports, with a decrease of 29.3% to 659,566 tonnes worth approximately 16.1 billion THB. This decline was primarily due to reduced orders for white and parboiled rice.
The Philippines, Indonesia, Iraq, Japan, Angola, Malaysia, Cameroon, and Mozambique are among the main markets for Thai white rice. In contrast, South Africa and Benin are major markets for parboiled rice. The US, Hong Kong, Canada, Singapore, China, and Australia are the leading importers of Thai Hom Mali fragrant rice. Exports of this variety saw a 7.4% increase from April to May, reaching 109,218 tonnes.
Charoen highlighted that the prices of Thai rice are comparatively higher than those produced by India, Vietnam, and Pakistan. This price difference has led the Philippines and Indonesia to increase their rice imports from Vietnam.
India remains the world’s largest rice exporter, shipping 7.20 million tonnes in the first five months of 2024, representing a 25.4% decline. Thailand comes in second place with 4.06 million tonnes, a 16.5% increase year on year. Vietnam follows closely with 4.03 million tonnes, an 11.2% growth, while Pakistan has shipped 3.02 million tonnes, experiencing a significant increase of 72.5%. The US has exported 1.5 million tonnes, showing an impressive rise of 66.7%.
The top five importers of Thai rice during this period were Indonesia, importing 914,760 tonnes (a 96.6% increase), followed by Iraq with 363,438 tonnes (a decrease of 38.7%). The US imported 344,873 tonnes (up 15.8%), the Philippines imported 280,522 tonnes (up 362.1%), and South Africa imported 229,369 tonnes (down 36.9%).
Source: [Thailand’s Rice Exports Experience Growth but Expectations Decrease in Q3 2024](https://en.vietnamplus.vn)
