| Excellent news to report this week on the trade front with Iraq! There has been legitimate progress from the government on behalf of the U.S. rice industry to help reopen trade for the coming marketing year. It is an honest treat to report something positive coming from government intervention, and having access to the Iraqi market certainly qualifies. Because the U.S. crop supply was dwindling when the problem initially emerged in the late spring, the alarm bells weren’t going off. However, steady work from private industry and government partners has found purchase just in time to book business as harvest gets underway. This has been a complicated process that involves the U.S. Treasury Department putting sanctions on the bank that finances Iraq’s food purchasing arm. The sanctions were imposed because of the Iraqi bank’s ties to Iran and terrorist organizations. Rice was caught in the crossfire, but the consistent effort has resulted in opening back up the second-largest milled market for U.S. long grain once again. If you have been following the Rice Advocate in recent weeks, resolving the problems in Iraqi purchases has been front and center in the face of the large U.S. crop that is just getting harvested. Louisiana is reported to be 34% complete, with Texas as 16%. No other states have started yet. The crop continues to look significantly better than last year, with 80% in the Good to Excellent conditions whereas last year it was only 71%. Missouri is reported at only 64% headed and California is trailing at 55%. All other states are reporting over 80% headed and harvest beginning in the coming weeks. Early indications on the ground from Louisiana are showing milling yields that are looking better than last year. We can’t put too much weight on these yet, but with head rice in the low 60s and total in the high 60s for the early rice, the optimism is holding strong. Even the early harvest in Arkansas has several folks thinking the field yields will be up, but most are cautious to make any predictions on milling yields. In Asia, the market hasn’t changed much in the past few weeks. Prices have hovered in Thailand and Vietnam in the $575-$580 pmt range. There continues to be chatter about when and how India will release or relax its export ban, so the imminent glut of rice is a concern that is keeping many traders up at night. The news of Iraq truly carries the day in this report, as it has been one of the biggest weights on pricing expectations for the coming U.S. crop. Not only will the industry benefit from the needed demand, but the mills will keep busy churning through paddy and be able to avoid dropping the price in other markets to generate business to get the mills running. The weekly USDA Export Sales report shows net sales of 19,300 MT reported for the 2024/2025 marketing year, which began August 1. A total of 214,900 MT in sales were carried over from the 2023/2024 marketing year, which ended July 31. Exports for the period ending July 31, of 56,200 MT brought accumulated exports to 3,313,100 MT, up 79% from the prior year’s total of 1,848,700 MT. |
 |
25722 Kingsland Blvd., Ste. 203, Katy, Texas 77494
Phone: 713-974-7423
USRPA does not discriminate in its programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, or marital/family status. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of information (such as Braille, large print, American sign language, language translation, etc.) should contact USRPA at 713-974-7423. EEO.
