India mulls easing rice export limits, aiding world supply

(Sept 18): India is considering relaxing curbs on overseas sales of non-basmati rice, days after scrapping a floor price for exports of a premium grade, potentially boosting global supply of the grain that feeds billions of people. The nation — which ranks as the world’s biggest rice shipper — has limited sales abroad for more than a year in a bid to contain domestic prices. Bloomberg News reported in July that India was planning to relax curbs on some varieties to avoid a glut in the country before the new crop arrives in October. “That’s under consideration,” India’s Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra said in New Delhi on Wednesday, referring to current restrictions on several varieties of non-basmati rice. “These things are very dynamic and we will take an appropriate decision” depending on the country’s requirements and available stockpiles, he told reporters. India last week moved to abolish the minimum export price of basmati rice to increase its competitiveness in the global ...