The Bank also says that rice imports surged despite an increase in rice production in FY 2012-13. Decline in international rice prices, increase in domestic rice prices, appreciation of Bangladeshi taka against the U.S. dollar are the main reasons for surge in rice imports, according to the Bangladesh Bank.According to the Bangladesh Bank, average rice prices in the international market declined by around 14.3% to about 393 per ton during the first six months of FY 2013-14 from $458.5 per ton in FY 2012-13. Average rice prices in the international market were $504.5 per ton in FY 2011-12 and $ 470.7 per ton in FY 2010-11, according to the Bank report. In comparison, average prices of imported rice were Tk 30.65 per kilogram (around $388 per ton), while the average domestic rice prices stood between Tk 38 and TK 40 per kilogram (around $482 - $507 per ton) during the first six months of FY 2013-14 (July – December), says the Bank. According to the Ministry of Food, Bangladesh imported 374,560 tons of rice between July, 1 2013 and April 7, 2014, of which 371,500 tons are imported by the private sector and 3,060 tons are imported by the government. The country imported only 28,930 tons of rice in FY 2012-13, of which 25,270 tons were imported by the private sector and 3,660 tons were imported by the government.The USDA projects Bangladesh’s rice imports to reach around 400,000 tons in MY 2013-14 (May - April), up 1,043% from 35,000 tons of rice imported in MY 2012-13. Tags: Bangladesh rice import value, Bangladesh rice production, Bangladesh rice consumption, Bangladesh rice imports
Indonesia Government to Formulate New Rules for Premium Rice Imports Apr 09, 2014
The Indonesian government is planning to formulate new rules for the importation of premium rice to prevent illegal rice imports, according to local sources.Indonesia imports medium quality rice only through the stateowned logistics agency Bulog, but allows the private sector to import premium quality rice. However, reports claimed that some private importers were importing cheap medium quality rice. A government investigation found that the allegations were false.However, the new trade minister wants to improve the rice import structure to prevent misuse. The Minister says, “We aim to regulate who can and cannot import and by doing this we can easily detect who is responsible for illegal imports.” Under the new policy, rice importers would be divided into producer importers and registered importers. Producer importers are those who use rice for production of other rice related products such as noodles, and registered importers are those who resell it to local buyers and distributors. The Director-General for Foreign Trade says that import supervision mechanism would be tightened and importers would undergo a series of verification processes before being declared as producer or registered importers, and special teams would be assigned to check warehouses of importers and to track the source of imports. He also says that under the new policy, the government aims to categorize rice by harmonized system (HS) codes, which would allow the authorities to differentiate medium rice from premium rice easily.In 2013, Indonesia produced about 37 million tons of rice, against a consumption of 35 million tons. The country imported 50,000 tons of premium rice from Thailand and Vietnam last year. USDA estimates Indonesia to
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