Myanmar traders decide to halt rice export

The Myanmar Rice Federation on Thursday decided to halt rice export until Sept. 15 due to severe flood in the country.

The decision was made at an urgent meeting also participated by the Myanmar Rice Traders Association and other related organizations.

The one-and-a-half-month freeze is to ensure an adequate supply of rice for the domestic market and to maintain price stability, said U Aung Than Oo, vice president of the federation.

Import will also be considered if there is a shortage in the domestic market during the period, said U Aung Than Oo, adding that a total of 170,000 bags of rice will be purchased from the private sector to be stored as reserve.

The federation in a announcement Sunday vowed to take steps to deal with the price hike of rice and rice shortage in flood-hit areas and help those in need of rice.

Meanwhile, the government is taking steps to boost the output of paddy rice in areas not affected by the flood.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, 1,170, 374 acres (474,001 hectares) of farmlands in 13 regions and states in the country were under water.

Over 1.8 million tons of rice were exported in fiscal year 2014- 15, figures from the federation show.