CNI News
24 February 2024

Although Bangladesh offered to buy 1.5 tons of rice from Myanmar, Myanmar was unable to export it, according to the Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF).

Regarding the export of 1.5 million tons of rice from Myanmar to Bangladesh, Vice President of the Vietnam - Malaysia Business Association and Myanmar Ambassador to Malaysia discussed reportedly.

However, Myanmar has not been able to export the rice to Bangladesh because the it has been unable to negotiate price while domestic rice prices are going up and the price of buying from Bangladesh is low, U Nay Lin Zin, general secretary of the Myanmar Rice Millers Association (MRMA), told CNI News.

" For the time being, it has been cancelled. We haven't sold the rice to Bangladesh. We haven't been able to negotiate with that country. We are selling rice to other countries. We have a few crises regarding export and local market." he said.

While preparation is being made to export rice

Although the rice export to Bangladesh was started by sea since 2022, Myanmar has not been able to export rice to that country in this fiscal year reportedly. However, there are regular exports to other countries, according to the MRF.

Traders did not export rice to Bangladesh because the prices of rice within Myanmar were rising although Bangladesh offered to buy rice from Myanmar, an official from the Myanmar Rice and Paddy Traders Association, told CNI News.

" There was a plan to sell rice to Bangladesh in the past, but when the domestic prices of rice went up, we made a decision to suspend selling rice to Bangladesh temporarily. We have sold rice to that country twice. It was convenient to sell. We exported rice by sea." he said.
due to the change in export earnings policy, profits for traders are less than before reportedly. Although export earnings gained from the export of rice and broken rice, is allowed to be spent to import fuel and edible oil, because they must be sold only at the price designated by the government, traders don't import any more, reportedly.

65 percent of export earnings are allowed to convert at the market price and 36 percent must be sold at the price designated by the Central Bank of Myanmar, according to the policy that have been changed.