Vietnamese rice accounts for 84 percent of Philippines’ rice imports

The Philippines imported close to 800,000 tonnes of rice in the first four months of this year, of which Vietnamese rice accounted for 84 percent.

Harvesting rice

According to the Philippine Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), in the January-April period, the country imported about 780,069 tonnes of rice, including 656,133 tonnes from Vietnam.

The Philippines imported 778,986 tonnes of rice in the same period last year.

In a recent report, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) projected Philippines' rice imports could reach 2 million tonnes this year, down 18.36 percent compared to the volume in 2020 as the Philippines eyes bigger rice production in 2021.

Earlier, in an executive order, Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte cut the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) tariff rates on rice to 35 percent from 40 percent for in-quota purchases and 50 percent for out-quota volume for one year.

According to the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Philippines’s lowering tariffs on imported rice would open up opportunities for Vietnam to maintain stable supply of the product for the country and helping it stabilise the domestic market./.

VNA