Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Up to 205 local traders nationwide were permittedto export rice as of January 18, following a list released by theMinistry of Industry and Trade’s Agency of Foreign Trade.  

Perthe list, the Mekong Delta City of Can Tho saw the highest number oflicensed rice exporters at 43. Ho Chi Minh City ranked second with 38eligible rice exporters, followed by the southern provinces of Long An, AnGiang and Dong Thap at 25, 20 and 18, respectively.

Other localitieswith licensed rice exporters were Tien Giang and Hanoi with eight, Nghe An withseven, and Kien Giang and Vinh Long at six. 

Meanwhile,other localities had only one permitted rice exporter, such as Dak Nong,Tra Vinh, Tay Ninh, Binh Dinh, Binh Duong, Ha Tinh, Nam Dinh and NinhBinh. 

Despitea modest decline of 3.5 percent in export volume to 6.15 million tonnes mainlydue to the Government's efforts to ensure national food security amidthe COVID-19 pandemic, rice shipments still recorded turnover ofnearly 3.1 billion USD in 2020, a year-on-year increase of 9.3 percent.

Theexport price of Vietnamese rice reached 499 USD per tonne, up 13.3 percent comparedto 2019. This was the highest price of rice for export in recent years, whichbrought about benefits for local rice farmers.

ThePhilippines was still the top importer of Vietnamese rice in 2020,purchasing 2.22 million tonnes worth 1.06 billion USD, a year-on-year surge of4 percent in volume and 19.3 percent in value, according to the GeneralDepartment of Customs.

Thiswas a record high for rice export volume to this traditional market and itwas also the first time the value exceeded the 1 billion USD mark. Inaddition, the export price to the Philippines surged in the year, hitting 476USD per tonne on average, up 14.7 percent against 2019.

ThePhilippines remained the leading market of Vietnamese rice, holding the lion’sshare of 35.5 percent and 33.9 percent in total volume and export revenue ofthe country.

TheVietnam Food Association forecasts a bright picture for the country's riceexports in the first quarter of 2021 as main export outlets such as thePhilippines and Africa have signed contracts to buy rice from Vietnam.

Accordingto the association, the Asian rice market started to heat up again whenmany potential customers mainly from China, Bangladesh and thePhilippines were urgently buying. 

Thus, rice exports thisyear would likely top 6 million tonnes, the association predicted. 

Tradeexperts said the country was switching to exporting more fragrant andhigh-quality rice at a higher price and added value. Furthermore, local ricefarmers and traders had paid much attention to improving the quality of rice,origin traceability as well as adopted measures to meet the requirements ofdemanding markets like the EU, the Republic of Korea and the US./.