Rice imports continue to remain high and domestic inventory continuously grow

By CnAgri2018-08-15 15:59:39 Print In 2017/18, the total output of domestic paddy was 205 million tons. The annual import of paddy was equivalent to 5.347 million tons of rice. The large amount of imports lowered domestic price and production, resulting in a decline in production. The annual domestic consumption was 204 million tons, of which the consumption of paddy for rice milling was 182 million tons. The ending inventory was 92.092 million tons and the safety factor was 45.14%. As of the end of June, domestic paddy inventory reached 915.82 billion tons, and the monthly safety factor was 8.7.
In 2017/18, the price level was 2,753 yuan/ton. Affected by national policies and abundant stocks, the prices of japonica rice, middle and late rice, and early indica rice were 3,035 yuan/ton, 2,718 yuan/ton, and 2,507 yuan/ton respectively.
In terms of paddy inventory composition, the national inventory, traders’ inventory, farmers’ inventory, and processing enterprises’ inventory in June were 79.11 million tons,   5 million tons, 2.75 million tons, and 5.23 million tons respectively. As of the end of April, the paddy sales rate of farmers has reached 98.67%.
In 2018/19, affected by the country's overall downward adjustment of rice prices, the annual output and sown area will decline, reaching 201 million tons, and domestic consumption will total 205 million tons. The gap between production and demand supports the rebound of grain prices, and the imports of rice are equivalent to 5.3 million tons of paddy. Around the end of the crop year, the inventory will be 91.591 million tons, and the annual safety factor will reach 45.02%, at a relatively high level.