VINAGRI News - Despite a global surplus, in March, Vietnam still exported 1 million tons of rice. The Chinese market increased its imports of Vietnamese rice by 2.5 times; while the largest rice buyer, the Philippines, will significantly increase its rice imports this year and next year, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). Despite the global surplus and the strong impact of the Middle East conflict, in March, Vietnam maintained its rice exports at 1 million tons, with a value of 516 million USD. In the first three months of this year, the total reached 2.3 million tons, an increase of 0.2%, and the value reached 1.1 billion USD, a decrease of 7.8% compared to the same period last year. The Philippines remains the main consumer market with a market share of nearly 53%, followed by China with 15% and Ghana with 7.6%. The Mekong Delta is currently in the spring rice harvest season. Especially, the amount of rice exported to China increased to 2.5 times compared to ...