Rice exports increase to $1.55 billion

[LahoreEstate]

AHMED MALIK
KARACHI (April 09 2009): The countrys rice exports have increased to $1.55 billion in the current fiscal year from July 2008 to April 05, 2009. "Despite financial crisis, global economic recession and heavy competition in the international markets due to bumper crop in almost all rice growing countries, Pakistani rice exports showed a tremendous increase", local rice exporters said.

According to official figures, Pakistan exported a total of 20.816 million tons rice of different varieties to various countries across the globe in this period. Out of which, the export of non-basmati rice variety increased to 14.238 million tons worth $770 million, while 0.657 million basmati rice worth $780 million were exported in the first nine months of the current fiscal.

Abdul Rahim Janoo, Chairman Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (Reap) told Business Recorder on Wednesday that the rice exports is expected to cross $2.2 billion mark by the end of June this year as the export of basmati variety has just started from March. Pakistani rice exporters have orders to export basmati rice in the remaining period of current fiscal.

"We will be able to achieve the landmark of $2.2 billion of rice exports this year", he added. He pointed out that the rice export is the only growing sector, as the countrys rice exports have tremendously increased to this level from a meagre exports of only $300 million before privatisation of rice trade in the country.

"We are working to explore new markets and to recapture our traditional markets to further increase our exports and to earn more foreign exchange for the country", he added. In this regard, Reap has planned to hold a "Biryani Festival" in major cities of Saudi Arabia to target Ramazan and Hajj season.

He said that the government wants to increase countrys exports to earn more foreign exchange, however, according to him some bureaucrats are not ready to cooperate with the exporters and usually create hurdles. "We will discuss this issue with the Federal Commerce Minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim in a meeting to be held in next two days", he added.

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