Vietnam ranked top position among Singapore’s rice suppliers

Vietnam continued to be the top source of rice in Singapore, with S$73.4 million (over $54.6 million) worth of rice export to the latter during the first half of 2024, a year-on-year surge of 54.67%, according to a report from a  VNA Singapore-based reporter 

The reporter quoted statistics from the Vietnam Trade Office in Singapore as showing that export turnover of glutinous rice to the city-state rose more than five fold to S$8.9 million (over $6.6 million), broken rice shot up 187.3% to S$1.5 million (more than $1.11 million), and milled or husked fragrant rice soared 161.35% to S$27.27 million (over$20.6 million).

Meanwhile, earnings from white rice witnessed a slight increase of 1.91% to S$34.5 million (nearly $25.7 million), while revenue from regular brown rice fell 51.2% to S$102,000 (over $75,951).

Vietnamese rivals, Thailand and India, sold some S$70.73 million (nearly $52.7 million) and S$58.41 million (nearly $43.5 million) worth of rice to Singapore, respectively.

Singapore’s increasing rice import is attributable to India’s rice export ban, and the country’s tourism recovery. During the six-month period, it spent nearly S$224.5 million (nearly $167.2 million) on rice purchase, up 13.62% year-on-year.

According to Vietnamese trade counselor Cao Xuan Thang in Singapore, major competitors of Vietnam in the Singaporean market, namely Thailand, India and Japan, have paid due attention to enhancing their product images, while Vietnamese firms have had no large-scale promotion campaign.

He was quoted as stressing that Vietnamese exporters must strive to improve their competitive edge as well as rice quality, given the strict management of the rice market by the Singaporean government.

The signing of agreements and commitments at the governmental level regarding rice supply will contribute to stabilizing Vietnamese rice shipment to Singapore, he suggested.

In the first three months of this year, Vietnam for the first time surpassed India and Thailand to become the largest rice exporter to Singapore by shipping S$36.15 million (0ver $26.9 million) worth of rice, an increase of 80.46% over the same period in 2023.