World agricultural market: Export rice prices of Thailand and Vietnam decrease

Export prices of Thai and Vietnamese rice fell last week, due to lower demand and increased supply, while Indian rice prices were stable thanks to sustained demand from African countries.

Rice is displayed for sale at a shop in Narathiwat, southern Thailand. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

Thai and Vietnamese rice export prices fell last week

Price rice export of Thailand and Vietnam Indian rice prices fell last week on lower demand and increased supplies, while Indian rice prices were steady on sustained demand from African countries.

Vietnam’s 5% broken rice was offered at $580-$585 a tonne on May 30, down from $585-$590 a tonne a week earlier, according to traders. A trader in Ho Chi Minh City said prices fell as supplies increased as farmers began harvesting the summer-autumn crop.

Meanwhile, Thailand’s 5% broken rice prices were quoted at $620-$630 a tonne, down slightly from $630-$635 a tonne a week earlier. A Bangkok-based trader said the fall in prices was due to the previous auction, which pushed up selling prices, but Thai rice was not sold in the end.

Stable demand from Africa and Iraq has supported prices and further supplies will be added in July and August, another trader said.

Top exporter India’s 5% broken parboiled variety was quoted at $535-$543 a tonne this week, unchanged from $536-$544 last week. Supply was tight in central and eastern states, said an exporter based in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh. Demand was more or less steady as India offered lower prices than other countries.

World coffee prices under pressure to fall again

According to the latest data, coffee prices on the world market on June 1 were under pressure to decrease again after a strong increase in the previous session.

Specifically, on the ICE Futures Europe exchange, the price of Robusta coffee for delivery in July 2024 decreased by 2.88% to 4,147 USD/ton. On the ICE Futures US exchange, the price of Arabica coffee for delivery in July 2024 decreased by 3.07% to 225.85 US cents/lb (1 lb = 0.4535 kg).

The downward pressure was mainly due to hedge funds aggressively liquidating their long positions after the recent rally, while dry weather in Brazil is boosting the harvest, especially for Robusta coffee.

Technically, the strong resistance levels of Robusta coffee prices recently were 3,967 USD/ton and 4,200 USD/ton. Currently, the market is fluctuating around 4,200 USD/ton. If it can overcome this level with abundant cash flow, the market can completely explore the old historical peak of 4,338 USD/ton.

Some analysts are even optimistic that with the USD index cooling down, commodities priced in this currency such as coffee will become more attractive to global investors, thereby increasing demand in the futures market.

In the spot market, dealers and traders continue to worry that insufficient rainfall in Vietnam’s Central Highlands could reduce output in the new crop, while there are early warnings in Brazil that a heatwave could continue, posing a risk to coffee growing areas in the 2024/2025 crop year.

According to a survey, coffee prices in the Central Highlands region continued to increase for the fourth consecutive day.

Specifically, coffee prices in Dak Lak and Gia Lai both increased by VND800/kg, reaching VND123,500/kg, in Lam Dong increased by VND1,000/kg, reaching VND123,000/kg, and in Dak Nong increased by VND800/kg, reaching VND124,000/kg - the highest level in the country at present.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, coffee is one of the agricultural products with the highest export price in the first 5 months of this year, at 3,482 USD/ton, up 49.9% over the same period. The increase in coffee export price is higher than that of rice and pepper (up 20.5% and 39.3% respectively)...

According to experts, farmers made good profits from the recent coffee crop as prices rose despite a drop in output. High prices will motivate farmers to take better care of their coffee gardens, as well as consider expanding their acreage./.

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