Vietnam Imports Rice from India for the First Time in Decades

03 March 2021

Vietnam, the world’s third largest exporter of rice, has begun importing rice from India for the first time in decades. This was due to rising local prices of rice, which settled the highest in nine years amid limited domestic prices. Export Genius Vietnam import data of rice shows Vietnam’s rice imports valued USD 672 thousand in 2019. India is the sixth largest supplier of rice to Vietnam.  

Do you know?

                     ·         India is the world’s largest exporter of rice.

                     ·         Vietnam is the third largest exporter of rice.

                     ·         India exported a record 14 million tonnes of rice in 2020.

Vietnam Imports Rice for the First Time from India in Decades

Due to limited domestic rice supplies and rise in prices, Vietnam has started importing rice from India for the first time in decades to meet the rice demand. Indian traders have contracted to export 70,000 tonnes of 100% broken rice for January and February shipments at abut USD 310 per tonne on a free-on-board basis.

Value of Vietnam Imports Indian Rice (2010-2019)

If we see Vietnam imports Indian rice in past years, we found that the value was highest in 2010, 2011 and 2012, which declined considerably thereafter. In fact, Vietnam’s imports of rice from India valued USD 672 thousand in 2019. Below given chart and table shows dollar amount of Vietnam imports rice from India during 2010-2019.

Vietnam’s Top 10 Import Partners of Rice 2019

Vietnam’s largest import partner of rice in 2019 was China, which shared 40% value to total imports. As China is losing export opportunities from many countries due to coronavirus pandemic and other issues, Vietnam has started looking for other options like India as trading partner. In 2019, India was the sixth largest supplier of rice to Vietnam, which shared 2% value to total value of rice shipments. See chart and table below to know Vietnam’s top 10 import partners of rice with their percentage share recorded in 2019.

Vietnam’s rice imports from India underscore tightening supplies in Asia, which could lift prices in 2021. Global Covid-19 pandemic has also prompted Vietnam and other countries to stockpile rice. Get full updates on Vietnam import market of rice and Vietnam import statistics right here.