Thai rice exports slump 23.9% in first eight months on strong baht, global glut

Arada Fuangtong, director-general of the Department of Foreign Trade (DFT), said exports between January and August totalled 5.04 million tonnes, down 23.98% from 6.63 million tonnes in the same period last year.

The value of exports fell 30.58% to US$2.98 billion (99.06 billion baht), compared with US$4.30 billion (153.91 billion baht) a year earlier.

The decline was driven by higher output among major exporters and importers alike, as favourable weather boosted harvests. This resulted in a global surplus, putting downward pressure on prices. In addition, key buyers such as Indonesia and the Philippines slowed imports, further dampening demand.

A stronger baht also added pressure by eroding Thailand’s price competitiveness against rivals such as Vietnam, India and Pakistan.

Despite the challenges, Thailand has managed to expand shipments of premium rice varieties, including jasmine rice, parboiled rice, sticky rice and brown rice, to markets such as China, the United States, South Africa, the Middle East and Europe. 

However, exports of white rice and Thai fragrant rice declined due to fierce price competition.

Arada said the DFT is continuing efforts to sustain and boost rice exports, including talks with major partners such as Japan and China. Negotiations with China Oil and Foodstuffs Corporation (COFCO) on a remaining 280,000 tonnes under a government-to-government deal have progressed positively.

For the final quarter of 2025, the DFT will step up promotional efforts to secure orders. Planned activities include hosting a delegation of Hong Kong rice importers in November, pursuing new markets for white and parboiled rice in Iraq and Saudi Arabia, and signing an MoU with Singapore to strengthen trade cooperation.

Thailand will also showcase its rice at major trade fairs, including Foodex Saudi, Anuga in Germany, and the China International Import Expo (CIIE), to expand export opportunities and reinforce confidence among global buyers.

This article has been republished from The Nation Thailand.