The country's rice exports posted a significant growth crossing $ 1 billion in the first seven months (July-Jan) of this fiscal year (FY18). According to Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP), rice exports in terms of quantity and volume posted a significant surge in the initial seven months of this fiscal year.
Pakistan exported some 2.28 million tons of rice amounting to $1.06 billion in July to January of FY18 compared to some 1.971 million tons of rice exports amounting to $820 million in the same period of last fiscal year, depicting a growth of 15 percent in terms of quantity and 29 percent in terms of value.
Rafique Suleman, Senior Vice Chairman, REAP expressed his pleasure over higher rice exports. He believes that growth in exports will continue in the remaining period of this fiscal year. "Now, Pakistan's rice exports have come out of crisis, posting a healthy growth," he maintained.
He said right now international demand for rice has risen. "This year we had a very good crop in terms of quality and quantity. Further, prices of Pakistani rice are comparatively cheaper than its competitors, such as Thailand, Vietnam, etc," he added.
He said REAP members are putting up untiring efforts and doing aggressive marketing to increase rice exports to earn valuable foreign exchange for the country. "We have set an export target of some 4 million tons of Pakistani rice and are confident that we will be able to achieve $ 2 billion mark by the end of this fiscal year," Rafique said.
He said as per guidelines of REAP, exporters are also focusing on European countries as India is losing Euro markets due to the excess limit set for pesticide residue found in Indian rice. This is the right time and a good opportunity for Pakistani rice exporters to cash in on and grab this important market, he added.
He also urged the ministry of commerce to extend support and facilitate rice exporters, so as to increase our rice exports to European countries. Senior Vice Chairman REAP said Kenya is the largest buyer of Pakistani rice and the country has exported 284,000 MTs of rice amounting to $102 million during the first seven months of this fiscal year (July to January 2018).
However, he expressed concern over the decline in exports to China, which was the 2nd largest destination for Pakistani rice exporters. At the end of January 2018, only 186,000 MTs of rice valuing $61 million could be exported to China. Rafique requested the authorities concerned to highlight the matter in the negotiations during the 2nd round of Pakistan China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and must obtain maximum favour for Pakistani rice exports.
He added that Pakistani rice exporters are putting up extraordinary efforts for fetching valuable forex for the country. They are not only striving for economic growth but also making huge investment for installing world's latest rice machinery and modern technology for value addition.