Pakistani rice export sales were thin in the past week due to high domestic prices, which will continue to limit sales in the coming weeks, traders said on Tuesday. "Our export price (of IRRI-6 variety of rice) is over $50 higher then the price quoted by the Chinese traders," said an exporter in Karachi. "High prices have made exports difficult." Chinese traders are quoting $180 per tonne compared with Pakistan's $240.
The exporter said last week Pakistani traders had sold 35,000 tonnes of IRRI-6 rice to the World Food Programme for North Korea and Sri Lanka.
"Other than the purchases by the WFP, no major contacts were signed during the past week and also nothing is in the pipeline because international buyers are asking us to cut prices," the exporter added.
"At current prices obtaining an export order is next to impossible."
Traders said buyers in Pakistan's traditional African markets were increasingly looking to cheaper suppliers.
"We have a few small orders from Madagascar and East African countries. But I don't think we have any orders from any other part of the world," another exporter said.
Traders expected prices would ease in February when Pakistan's key competitors would be in the market with big stocks for export.
"In February, Burma (Myanmar) and Vietnam will be in the market with sufficient stocks to sell," said another exporter.
Exporters said that between October and the second week of January, Pakistan exported 350,000 tonnes of IRRI-6 rice.
In the domestic market, IRRI-6 was quoted at around 1,300-1,350 rupees per 100-kg bag, little changed from a week earlier. Traders quoted FOB prices for IRRI-6 at $238/240 per tonne.
Pakistan has said it expects its rice crop for the latest season from last April until November to exceed 4.6 million tonnes, compared with four million tonnes in the previous year, leaving more than 2.4 million tonnes for exports.
Comments
Comments are closed.