RPT-Asia Rice-India prices rebound, Vietnam sees uptick in demand

(Repeats from Thursday)
* Indian rupee hits more-than one-month high
* India's exports in October fall 42% year-on-year
* Stronger baht continues to weigh on Thai demand

By Karthika Suresh Namboothiri
BENGALURU, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Indian rice export prices
rebounded this week from three-year lows as exporters increased
rates to compensate for a rising rupee, while low supply and an
uptick in demand from Cuba, Iraq and Philippines pushed up
Vietnamese rates.
Top exporter India's 5% broken parboiled variety
RI-INBKN5-P1 was quoted around $358-$363 per tonne this week,
up from last week's $356-$361, which was the lowest since
January 2017.
The appreciation in the rupee has been forcing traders to
raise prices, but demand is still subdued, said an exporter
based at Kakinada in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.
The Indian rupee INR=D4 on Thursday rose to its highest
level in more than a month, trimming exporters' margin from
overseas sales.
India's rice exports in October fell 42% year-on-year to
485,898 tonnes, government data showed, due to weak demand from
African countries for non-basmati rice. In Vietnam, rates for 5% broken rice RI-VNBKN5-P1 were
quoted at $350 a tonne on Thursday, up slightly from $345 last
week.
"Supply has run very low now as the harvest has ended while
demand from exporters to fulfil shipments to Cuba and Iraq is
still high," said a trader in Ho Chi Minh City, adding demand
from Philippines had also been picking up in the past two weeks.
Another trader said local supplies would increase from late
next month when the winter-spring harvest begins.
Meanwhile, prices of 5% broken Thai rice RI-THBKN5-P1 were
little changed at $397-$411 a tonne on Thursday versus $397-$410
the week before.
"We were expecting the price to drop with new supply this
month but prices have not changed much," a Bangkok-based trader
said.
Prices for the Thai variety have been high relative to
competitors throughout the year, largely due to the strength of
the local currency THB=TH .
"I have not been able to sell any for more than two months
now because of the high prices," another trader in Bangkok said.
"My usual customers say they have been buying from Vietnam and
Myanmar. Rice from those countries are of similar quality to
ours and more importantly, their rice is cheaper."
Bangladesh, the world's fourth largest rice producer, could
face severe damage to its growth in agricultural output due to
climate change and rising sea-levels, the World Bank said in a
report this week.
The country produces around 35 million tonnes of rice
annually.