The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has forecast that the country’s rice exports could reach 7.1 to 7.4 million tonnes this year.

This figure was released in the context that several Southern American countries such as Argentina and Uruguay saw their rice output fall in the 2011-2012 crop.

Argentina’s rice output is expected to decrease by 20 percent from the 2010-2011 crop while that of Uruguay to fall six percent.

The US Department of Agriculture forecast that the global rice output in the 2011-2012 crop is about 457.9 million tonnes, up one percent while the global consumption of rice in this period would be 458.7 million tonnes, a rise of two percent.

Also during this period, the global year-end rice reserve reaches 96.2 million tonnes, down one percent.

According to the Vietnam Food Association, Vietnam has exported about 3.3 million tonnes of rice, earning almost 1.6 billion USD since the beginning of this year./.