9 August, New Delhi: Media outlets said that as dry weather threatens output in Thailand and main shipper India prohibited certain exports, rice prices in Asia rose to the highest levels in nearly 15 years.
According to statistics from the Thai Rice Exporters Association, the price of Thai white rice with 5% broken, an Asian standard, increased to $648 per tonne, the highest price since October 2008.
That’s a rise of about 50% in just the last year alone, as compared to the previous year’s costs. The research said that the increase in price might contribute to inflationary pressures and increase import costs for purchasers, since rice is a staple food for billions of people in Asia and Africa.
The second-largest shipper, Thailand, has recently become a supply danger. Bloomberg stated that as the country prepares for drier circumstances brought on by El Nino, authorities are urging farmers to switch to crops that demand less water.
