Prices of rice exported from top hub India extended their rally to a fresh five-year peak this week on supply concerns, while strong demand kept Thailand and Vietnam rates near two-year highs.

 

India’s 5% broken parboiled variety was quoted at $412 to $420 per tonne, up from $409-$416 last week.

 

Demand has been moderating at higher levels, but prices were still rising due to limited supplies and the hike in government procurement prices, said a Mumbai-based exporter.

 

Global prices, now at their highest in 11 years, were set to rally further after top exporter India moved to boost farmer payments, just as El Nino threatens yields in key producers.

 

Vietnam’s 5% broken rice was offered at $500-$510 per tonnes on Thursday, unchanged from last week.

 

'Demand is strong and exporters are rushing to purchase paddy from farmers for their export contracts,' a trader based in Ho Chi Minh City said, adding global demand could stay elevated until the end of the year.

 

A senior official of the Vietnam Food Association said the country’s rice exports this year will exceed 6.5 million tonnes, but remain below last year’s 7.1 million tonnes.

 

Preliminary shipping data showed 95,200 tonnes were set to be loaded at Ho Chi Minh City port in the July 1-12 period, with most of the rice heading to Africa, Indonesia and the Philippines.

 

Thailand’s 5% broken rice prices were unchanged at $515 per tonne.

 

The prices stayed high due to strong demand from Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and some African nations as drought concerns prompted them to stock up, a Bangkok-based trader said.

 

Bangladesh’s rice output from the summer crop will exceed the target of 21.5 million tonnes this year, agriculture ministry officials said.

 

Dhaka has been trying to rein in domestic prices of the staple that have continued to soar despite good yield and reserves.

One District One Product (ODOP) programme under Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce & Industry collaborated with an e-commerce player, Groyyo to onboard aggregators selling ODOP-identified products on its platform consisting of several categories such as home textiles, home décor etc. This collaboration launch was held on 3rd July, 2023.

 

The tagging on this one-stop online platform is intended to strengthen each district’s identity, while giving a greater visibility to ODOP products. This brings an opportunity for the sellers to learn more about product requirements from the buyers and make their products marketable at the global level. 

 

On the occasion, Smt. Supriya Devasthali, Director, DPIIT, highlighted the importance of such engagements to enable artisans to tap a larger customer base. She expressed that the government encourages entrepreneurship, and creativity, fostering a favourable ecosystem for artisans to thrive, through such collaborations.

 

A diverse collection of artisanal products representing different parts of the country such as ceramics from Bulandshahr in UP, coconut products from Kozhikode in Kerala, kani shawls from Budgam, J&K, bell metal craft from Bastar, Chhattisgarh have already been onboarded on this platform. Going forward, the categories available on this portal will be expanded to wellness, jewellery, etc. 

 

Currently, ODOP has joined forces with 35+ brands, covering around 100 districts of the country. The team’s vision is to bring more aggregators under this campaign to enhance product accessibility and visibility.

 

ODOP Programme is aimed at creating sustainable employment at the district level while promoting holistic socio-economic development. The idea is to select, brand, and promote one product from each district of the country.   

 

In pursuance of Atmanirbhar Bharat and India’s current G20 Presidency, several initiatives are being undertaken by DPIIT, Government of India. Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal at the launch of the ODOP Catalogue, requested every organisation to work in collaboration with the programme. This will help promote the indigenous products from each district of the nation.

 

ODOP identified products can be accessed here: https://www.stylomania.in/pages/odop.

After the successful completion of two Trade and Investment Working Group (TIWG) meetings, the 3rd meeting will take place from 10th–12th July 2023 in Kevadia, Gujarat. The three-day meeting will be attended by more than 75 delegates from G20 member countries, invitee countries, regional groupings and international organisations. The focus of the meeting would be to build consensus on accomplishing action-oriented proposals put forward by the Indian Presidency on global trade and investment-related issues.

 

On the first day, a seminar on Trade Infrastructure will discuss the Role of Logistics in Expanding Global Value Chains (GVCs) and MSMEs Going Global: Integration with GVCs. The seminar will be followed by a guided tour of the Statue of Unity and a dinner hosted by the State Government for the G20 delegates. 

 

The five priority issues namely (i) Trade for Growth & Prosperity, (ii) Resilient Trade and GVCs, (iii) Integrating MSMEs in World Trade, (iv) Logistics for Trade and (v) WTO Reforms were extensively discussed among the G20 member/invitee countries during the first and second TIWG meetings. Moreover, presentations outlining each of the subjects and outcomes emanating from them were made by the Knowledge Partners during these meetings. Based on the opinions/suggestions expressed by the G20 member/invitee countries in these discussions, Indian Presidency has formulated action-oriented concrete proposals on each of the priority issues. 

 

These proposals relate to developing High-Level Principles for Digitalization of Trade Documents, Action Plan to Create Meta Information Interface for MSMEs, Generic mapping framework for GVCs, G20 Regulatory Dialogue and preparing a Compendium on best practices for Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs). In this backdrop, during the third meeting, the Presidency is now striving for consensus-building among the G20 member countries for eventual adoption of these proposals.

 

Accordingly, on 11th & 12th July, technical sessions will be conducted during which specific inputs/comments of the G20 member/invitee countries will be solicited on the Presidency’s proposals. These inputs will be suitably incorporated while drafting the Ministerial Communique which will be adopted during the G20 Trade and Investment Ministerial Meeting scheduled at Jaipur from 24th to 25th August, 2023.

 

The working agenda has been prepared keeping in mind the clarion call given by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi that the G20 outcomes should be action-oriented and address the challenges faced by the Global South. In this backdrop, the outcomes from the 3rd TIWG Meeting would pave the way for building a shared understanding of the challenges being faced in accelerating global trade and investment, and develop tools that could leverage existing opportunities to make growth inclusive and transparent.

The grain diplomacy will help position India as a key player in global food security space, which currently is facing acute challenges due the shifts in geopolitics and the Russia-Ukraine war.

 

India has also sent food grains to other countries such as Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Maldives, Israel, Indonesia, Malaysia among others.

 

With monsoons now covering almost the entire country, concerns over a possible El Nino situation have somewhat eased. However, the delay has led to significant rise in food prices in India. Challenges related to climate change have been rising not just in India and South Asia but the world over. This has also caused worries over global food supplies.

 

More than 60 per cent of the rice sowing in India, which supplies about 40 per cent of the global rice requirement, takes place during the Kharif season which commences with the onset of the monsoon and harvested around November. The remaining production of rice takes place during the Rabi cycle in the winter months.

 

Last month Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing the G20 Agriculture Ministers’ summit said that India will not only be the voice of the Global South but was ready to play a crucial role in maintaining global food security amid rising climate risks while taking a lead role in charting out new dynamics.

 

India, the largest exporter of rice in the world, has been actively providing food grains to several vulnerable countries as part of its humanitarian assistance programme.

 

In the July to June period of 2022-23– the country’s crop year, food grain production rose 5 per cent to a record 330.53 million tonnes driven by increased output of rice and wheat.

THE office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced recently that the US and India had reached an agreement to terminate ongoing disputes at the World Trade Organisation (WTO), including a fight over the then President Donald Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminium and India’s retaliatory duties. India agreed to remove retaliatory tariffs implemented against certain US products in response to America’s institution of tariffs on steel and aluminium in 2018 under Section 232 of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act.

 

The six WTO disputes to be terminated are: from the US side — countervailing measures on certain hot-rolled carbon steel flat products from India, measures related to renewable energy sector, measures on steel and aluminium products; and from India’s side — measures related to solar cells and solar modules, export-related measures and additional duties on certain products from the US.

 

However, while the countries have agreed to terminate the outstanding disputes at the WTO, the US did not take the next step of exempting India from Section 232 tariffs. Indeed, the USTR statement highlighted the success of the negotiations while explicitly stating, 'The resolution maintains the integrity of the US 232 measures.' According to the terms of the resolution, the US will continue to monitor the efficacy of the Section 232 tariffs against India and keep processing exemptions to the tariffs, consistent with past practices.

 

'We have decided to resolve long-pending trade-related issues and make a new beginning,' Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at a joint news conference with President Joe Biden following their White House meeting.

 

The agreements are a surprising development after National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told mediapersons at a press briefing earlier not to expect 'a specific resolution on trade issues coming out of these next few days'.

 

In fact, India has agreed to remove retaliatory tariffs on certain US products, including chickpeas, lentils, almonds, walnuts, apples, boric acid and diagnostic reagents, which it imposed after Trump slapped duties on steel and aluminium imports.

 

'Today’s agreement represents the culmination of intensified bilateral engagement over the last two years, including through the US-India Trade Policy Forum, to deepen our economic and trade ties,' US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in a statement. 'As a result of our work, US agricultural producers and manufacturers will now enjoy renewed access to a critical global market, and we will strengthen our trade relationship with one of our closest partners,' she added.

 

The USTR remark on maintaining the integrity of the Section 232 measures means that India agreed to lift its trade retaliation without the US altering the steel and aluminium tariffs that Trump imposed, a USTR spokesperson said.

 

In addition to the two cases related to Trump’s tariffs, both nations also agreed to terminate four other WTO disputes — two each had been filed by India and the US. That still leaves one filed by the US in 2012 challenging India’s poultry trade barriers. However, a former US trade official said talks on that issue were continuing and a deal was still possible.

 

The two other cases terminated by the US are a 2018 complaint against Indian export subsidies and a 2013 complaint against Indian domestic content requirements for solar cells.

 

India terminated a 2016 complaint against state-level subsidies and domestic content requirements for renewable energy and a 2012 complaint over US countervailing duties on certain steel products.

 

The statement issued by Biden and Modi also highlighted India’s interest in being reinstated in the US Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) programme, which waives US import duties on thousands of goods from developing countries.

 

Trump kicked India out of the programme in 2019, saying that New Delhi did not provide sufficient market access to American goods. Biden and Modi agreed to intensify work on issues related to India’s eligibility criteria, the joint statement said.

 

The leaders also welcomed the initiation of talks on government procurement issues. That could lead to India’s designation as a ‘Trade Agreements Act’ country, which would help its companies compete for US government procurement contracts.

 

In another trade area, Biden reiterated his administration’s commitment to work with the US Congress to lower barriers to the export of high-performance computing technology and source code to India.

 

Biden also invited Modi to attend as a guest the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, which the US is hosting in San Francisco in November. India is not a member of the 21-economy group, but had expressed interest in joining it in the past. Biden is expected to travel to India in September for the G20 leaders’ summit, which New Delhi is hosting.

 

Politico had reported that there could be a package of agreements to resolve the WTO disputes. But Kirby dismissed that possibility. 'That’s not what this is about,' he said of Modi’s White House visit. 'This is really about the strategic nature of the relationship and driving it forward.'

 

That ran against a previous pledge by Tai and Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, issued in January, to try to resolve the WTO disagreements in the coming months. Tai and Goyal recently held a virtual meeting to discuss bilateral trade concerns.

 

In future also, there is no need to knock the door of the WTO to resolve trade disputes between the two countries. Both can amicably resolve their trade disputes because the mutual understanding between them has enhanced bilateral trust.

The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) is looking forward to the expansion of the Lal Bahadur Shastri Interntional airport here, at the earliest. APEDA deputy general manager C B Singh said, 'Movement of perishable cargo is increasing by the day from this airport. Varanasi airport handled 561 metric ton of perishable cargo during 2022-23 financial year. 

Exports of fresh fruits, vegetables and cereals from east UP recorded a growth of 420% in 2022-23. In the first quarter of the current financial year (April- June), the Varanasi airport handled 160MT of agri cargo as compared to 46MT during the first quarter of 2022-23. It is 248 % higher than previous year’s first quarter.'

 

The cargo space of Varanasi-Sharjah goes full to capacity everyday, he said, adding, this flight gives direct connectivity to the Gulf market, while for London and other international markets the Farmer Producers Organisations (FPO) and exporters from east UP region are bound to opt for trans-shipment in which domestic flights take freight to Delhi or Mumbai for further transportation.

 

'Currently, very few airlines have trans-shipment bond for international cargo, including Indigo and Air India Express, while Air India, Vistara etc have not applied for trans-shipment bond,'he said, adding that to maintain this momentum of agri export from east UP region not only more trans-shipment bonds with more airlines but also increased frequency of international flights and operation of cargo flights are required.

With regard to the upcoming World Food India-2023, an investor roundtable interaction was co-chaired by the Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), and the Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries with agri-food processing companies in New Delhi, yesterday. The roundtable witnessed participation from the leading global and Indian food processing companies. During the interaction, the future plans of the participating companies and their prospects of partnerships with MoFPI for the WFI-2023, being organized from 3-5 November, 2023 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, were discussed.

 

In his special address, Secretary, DPIIT emphasized on the importance of manufacturing sector in the growing Indian GDP. He also mentioned the favourable agro-climatic zones in India which are not just suitable for production of a wide variety of agri-commodities like cereals, pulses, fruits, vegetables etc., but also to process them in large quantities.

 

In her keynote address, Secretary, MoFPI mentioned about the growth and vast opportunities present in the food-processing sector. She added that the ministry is organizing the 2nd edition of the highly anticipated World Food India event, envisioning an even larger scale compared to the previous 2017 edition. The Secretary extended a heartfelt invitation to all companies to participate in the event with great enthusiasm.

 

During the roundtable, the participating companies expressed their optimistic outlook on the Indian market and lauded the various initiatives taken by the Government of India to improve the business environment, including the favourable policies such as the Production Linked Incentive Scheme and the flagship Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana initiated by MoFPI. The companies also expressed their interest in participating in World Food India-2023 and affirmed their willingness to sponsor the event and showcase their products and technologies through dedicated stall spaces. Many companies also showed keen interest on partnering with MoFPI for the sessions that are being planned as part of the event.

 

In his closing remarks, Additional Secretary, MoFPI mentioned that the Investment Facilitation Cell (Invest India) and event partner FICCI will stay in touch with the companies to firm up the participation details. EY is roped in as the knowledge partner for the event.

 

NITI Aayog has called for a paradigm shift in approach towards agriculture with focus on liberalization of the sector and changes in the old regulations governing it to ensure significant and sustained increase in farmers’ income.

 

'Advancement in science-led technology, an enhanced role for the private sector in both pre and post-harvest phases, liberalised output markets, an active land lease market, and emphasis on efficiency will equip agriculture to address the challenges of the twenty-first century and contribute towards the goal of Viksit Bharat,' NITI Aayog member Ramesh Chand said in his working paper, co-authored with Jaspal Singh, a consultant at the Aayog.

 

Elaborating on the need to liberalise the sectors, the paper has proposed providing a facilitating regulatory environment and responsible public and private investments in and for agriculture.

 

'This will enable introduction and promotion of knowledge and skill intensive practices within agriculture, private and corporate sector investments in agriculture, new institutions of producers, integrated food system-based mechanisms, and new types of linkages between producers and end users, which in turn will lead to modernisation of the sector,' the paper said.

 

Identifying lack of efficiency as a bottleneck in the growth of the sector, the paper recommends a shift in emphasis from growth to efficient growth which means a cost effective increase in production.

 

'This requires deployment of state-of-the-art technology in agriculture, smart farming and maximising the value of main and by-products,' it said.

 

Further, it proposes to introduce a system of competition among states to improve 'ease of doing farming and farm business'.

 

According to the paper, agriculture will play a key role in India in achieving the goal of Viksit Bharat, inclusive development, green growth and gainful employment during Amrit Kaal.

 

In addition, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Agenda 2030 cannot be achieved without paying attention to agriculture, as 11 out of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are directly linked to agriculture, it said.

 

Cautioning that the instrument of minimum support price (MSP) should not cause distortions in market signals, the paper suggests that India should use a combination of two instruments, namely procurement and price deficiency payment, to pay MSP to farmers.

 

'Public procurement should be linked to the quantity needed for the public distribution system, price stability and strategic stocks. Other than this, MSP in mandated crops should be implemented through price deficiency payment,' it added.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday said that India and Tanzania have started trade settlements in local currencies and this new initiative will help in promoting commerce between the two countries. Addressing industry leaders at a function, the minister said India-Tanzania bilateral trade has seen very strong growth, and stood at USD 6.4 billion in 2022-23.

 

'Now, bear in mind, this is not only a very substantial bilateral trade, but it's also actually a bilateral trade, which is getting increasingly balanced. Many new products are being added to the trade basket...India remains the biggest destination for Tanzanian exports,' he said.

 

There's also an issue which has been brought up from time to time, which is the possibility of trade settlements in our own currencies, Jaishankar said.

 

'And I want to share with you that the India central bank has cleared such a possibility. So the three Indian banks, which are here, have that ability to do trade settlements in each other's currencies.

 

'I am told few transactions have already taken place in Indian rupees and Tanzanian shillings, and certainly this will provide an additional mechanism to promote trade between our two countries,' he said.

 

Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, and Canara Bank have operations in Tanzania.

 

Last year, the Reserve Bank of India and Indian finance ministry asked the top management of banks and representatives of trade bodies to push export and import transactions in rupee. They want banks in India to connect with their foreign counterparts for opening special rupee vostro accounts to facilitate cross-border trade in the Indian currency rather than the popular mode of the US dollar.

 

About 18 countries have already opened special vostro accounts with Indian banks.

 

On India-Africa economic ties, the minister said India's trade is USD 98 billion with Africa.

 

'India's investments are USD 75 billion, and we are expecting both this trade with Africa and investments in Africa to grow, and I certainly, so agree with what you said, which is that now that there is a pan-African larger continental free trade arrangement in the making, as it unfolds, I think it makes it easier to both trade with Africa and invest in Africa,' he said.

 

Jaishankar also stressed on frequent exchanges of business delegations to promote economic cooperation between the two countries.

 

He noted that in 2022, eight big exhibitions in different sectors took place in Tanzania.

 

Earlier in the day, Jaishankar inaugurated a bust of Swami Vivekananda at India's cultural centre in Dar es Salaam.

To celebrate the International Year of Millets, Ministry of Agriculture and Famers Welfare, Government of India and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, Government of Kenya will be co-hosting the ‘India-Africa International Millet Conference’ in Kenya with support of International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). The international conference scheduled for 30-31 August 2023, will witness participation from government leaders, researchers, farmers, entrepreneurs and industry associations etc, from around the globe.

 

The official curtain raiser for ‘India-Africa International Millet Conference’ was held at Nairobi, Kenya on Thursday, giving the audience a glimpse of what to expect.

 

The event was graced by the High Commissioner of India to Kenya, Joint Secretary (Crops), Government of India, Principal Secretary, Government of Kenya and Director General, ICRISAT. Officials from the agricultural sector of Kenya, members of the diplomatic community, international agricultural research leaders, farmers and representatives from the private sector also attended.

 

Through the international conference, the Government of India and Kenya aim to raise public awareness about millets as the ‘world’s emerging smart food. Additionally, the global event would also help highlight the South-South exchange and collaboration opportunities within the realm of millets.

 

With high levels of minerals such as iron, calcium, zinc and other vital nutrients, Millets are a treasure trove of health benefits. Additionally, they are also drought-resistant, pest-resilient, climate-friendly crops that can boost income opportunities and livelihoods of smallholder farmers, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.

 

The Curtain Raiser event commenced with Dr. Jacqueline Hughes, DG ICRISAT, briefing the audience about the agenda of the event. While enumerating the multiple benefits of millets, she spoke about the growing discourse around mechanization, seed systems, digital agriculture and value addition in millets. 'We need to strengthen the value chains of millets to ensure consumer demand which will then assure farmers of profitable markets', Dr. Hughes noted.

 

In her inaugural address, Ms. Shubha Thakur, JS (Crops), Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, noted how the conference would help highlight actionable strategies by leaders, investors, institutions and individuals, while serving as a medium for joint ventures, collaborations, and tech transfer among key stakeholders.'The Government of India, in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Millets Research, has been addressing concerns related to millet farming since 2018, when India celebrated its National Year of Millets. Acting on India’s proposal, the United Nations General Assembly declared the year 2023 as the ‘International Year of Millets’, giving these ancient grains a global platform. Our focus has been on ensuring sustainable agricultural practices and enhancing the commercial viability of millet cultivation. 'Ms. Shubha Thakur added.

 

In her welcome address, HE Namgya Khampa, the High Commissioner of India to Kenya, highlighted the importance of millets in addressing the issues of malnutrition and global hunger. Speaking about the significance of South-South cooperation in agriculture, HE Namgya Khampa also stated, 'We believe that collaboration between the global South in agriculture is crucial for maintaining food sufficiency in our countries.'

 

Following his remarks, Mr. Phillip Kello Harsama, Principal Secretary for Agriculture, Government of Kenya, further emphasized the significance of millets in the economic advancement of smallholder farmers. Since millets require minimal inputs and can be grown in relatively shorter duration, Kenyan farmers can benefit immensely from these wonder grains and add to their income, he noted.

 

One of the key highlights of the Curtain Raiser event was the unveiling of the logo and website of the India-Africa International Millet Conference. The website will enable participants to register for the conference and learn more about the global event and Millets in general.

 

The unveiling was followed by an insightful panel discussion on ‘Promoting Millets in Africa and India’ moderated by Dr. Rebbie Harawa, Regional Director & Country Representative, Kenya at ICRISAT. Distinguished panelists included the Director General of Kenya Agriculture and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO), the President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), and representatives from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Food Programme (WFP) and private sector.

 

The event concluded with a round of interaction with the media, and remarks by the Deputy High Commissioner, Kenya.