US rough rice futures on the Chicago Board of Trade soared on Friday, rising to a record high above $20 per hundredweight after major exporters Vietnam and India said they will further curb overseas sales, traders said. Hanoi confirmed it will cut rice exports by 22 percent this year from last.
India raised the minimum sale price for rice exports by more than 50 percent, effectively ending overseas sales of all but the highest quality grades. CBOT May rice settled up 37 cents at $19.67-1/2 per hundredweight and July closed up 45 cents at $20.00, after rising the 50-cent limit to a record $20.05. Bullish moves in CBOT rice options added support, with firms selling puts and buying calls, traders said.
Volume was heavy at an estimated 2,987 futures, up from 1,491 on Thursday. Options volume was estimated at 94 lots. US farmers are likely to expand their seedings of rice by at least 2 to 3 percent in 2008, responding to historically high prices, analysts said ahead of USDA's plantings report on Monday. Indonesia appointed state procurement agency Bulog as the sole agent allowed to export rice in a bid to control exports and maintain domestic stocks.
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