Vietnam to Export 4.5 Mln-5 Mln Tons of Rice in 2009

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has set a target of export between 4.5 million and 5 million tons of rice in 2009, the Labor newspaper reported.

 

In the dispatch No. 215/TTg-KTTH, the PM asked the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and the Vietnam Food Association to cooperate with rice producing localities to ensure rice for both domestic consumption and export, and to instruct localities to produce rice in line with market demand.

 

The PM also asked the State Bank of Vietnam to ensure sufficient loan for rice exporting companies while following the 4 per cent lending rate support program.

 

He asked the Ministry of Finance to report application of 0 per cent VAT to domestic rice trading companies.

 

According to Truong Thanh Phong, chairman of the Vietnam Food Association, local companies have so far this year signed contracts to export 3.1 million tons of rice that will be delivered by early June 2009.

 

The companies delivered 310,000 tons of January and will deliver an additional of 550,000-600,000 in February, bringing total rice export volume in the first two months of this year to more than 900,000 tons. (The Labor, Countryside Today)