Thailand seeks cooperation with India, Vietnam to support falling rice prices

Thailand is seeking cooperation with India and Vietnam to find ways to tackle falling rice prices, Commerce Minister Pichai Naripthaphan said on Thursday, amid simmering protests by local farmers calling for more support from the government.

Thailand is in talks with both countries to reduce competition, hoping to create a balance in rice prices in the global market and help farmers have stable income, Mr Pichai told parliament.

"We have already discussed it, but we are waiting for another meeting to see how much we can do about this," he said of talks with India and Vietnam.

Paddy prices in Thailand dropped by 30% year-on-year to an average of about 8,600 baht per tonne last month, according to the Commerce Ministry. Growers are calling for the government to help them sell rice at higher prices.

Thailand, the world's second-largest rice exporter, is likely to be hit hard by the resumption of rice exports by India, with the ministry expecting a 24% year-on-year decline in rice exports to 7.5 million tonnes this year.

Vietnam was the world's third largest shipper of the grain last year.

The Vietnamese government has told the Trade Ministry to seek to boost rice exports to the US, China, the European Union and Japan as the country looks to manage an oversupply of the grain, according to a government document reviewed by Reuters.

The government has also told the central bank to extend loans to firms so they can stockpile rice, according to the document which was signed this week by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.

"During the first months of 2025, the global rice trade has been evolving in a complicated manner with oversupply," the document said, noting demand was weak and large importers had been prudent in purchasing and stockpiling rice.

Vietnam has seen its export receipts fall as the global market absorbs rising supplies from India and as Indonesia seeks to boost production.

Vietnam's 5% broken rice has so far this year fallen 19% to US$389 (13,000 baht) per tonne from $481 per tonne at the end of last year, according to the Vietnam Food Association.

Vietnam exported 1.24 million tonnes of rice valued at $675 million in the first two months of this year, up 18.9% in terms of volume from the same period a year earlier but down 4.9% in terms of value, according to government data.