BENGALURU/MUMBAI/BANGKOK/HANOI AND BANGLADESH: Thai rice export prices fell to a more-than-one-year low this week pressured by quiet demand and competition from cheaper rivals, while India prices edged higher on a stronger rupee, despite sluggish demand from Asian and African buyers. Thailand’s 5% broken rice was quoted at $550-$560 per ton, the lowest level since July 20, 2023 and down from $562-$565 last week. There was demand coming from Indonesia, but competitors were buying rice from other exporters at lower prices, said a Bangkok-based trader, adding that depreciation in the Thai baht would help soften prices. Commerce Minister Pichai Naripthaphan said the impact of the baht’s rally on exports would be felt in the next three months, especially in agriculture goods.

Another trader said the market was waiting to see changes in India rice policy in the coming months and that supply was in the harvesting stages. Top exporter India’s 5% broken parboiled variety was quoted at $530-$536 per ton this week, up from the last week’s $528-$534, the lowest since the mid-January.

“The strong rupee is driving up prices, but demand is still sluggish. Buyers are holding off on purchases, hoping India will cut export duties,” said a Mumbai-based trader. Vietnam’s 5% broken rice was offered at $565 per metric ton on Thursday, according to the Vietnam Food Association. Traders said last week prices were $575-$580 per ton. “Prices fell on competition from other suppliers such as Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar,” a trader based in Ho Chi Minh City said.

Traders said a Vietnamese exporter secured contracts to export 59,000 tons of rice, part of Indonesian state purchasing agency Bulog’s international tender to buy about 450,000 tons of rice, after the exporter accepted a lower price. Vietnam’s rice exports in the year to mid-September rose 6.2% from a year earlier to 6.5 million tons, according to the government’s customs data.