Thai rice exports to stay low this year

Official export forecasts have not been released yet, but two Bangkok-based rice exporters said they are expecting more pain in 2021 (File pic rice field in Thailand)

BANGKOK: Thailand’s rice exports are headed for another gloomy year after sinking to the lowest volume in two decades in 2020, as a global shortage of shipping containers reduce the prospects of increasing shipments.

The cargo crunch is the latest woe facing the world’s second-largest rice exporter.

According to data from the Commerce Ministry on Dec 2, rice exports were 5.1 million tonnes through November 2020, down 28% from the same period a year earlier, on track for the lowest year since 2000.