Vietnamese rice field
From a continental perspective, Asian countries accounted for the highest dollar value worth of rice exports during 2016 with shipments amounting to $13.1 billion or almost three-quarters (71.3%) of all rice exports.
North American exporters supplied 10.4% of global rice exports, followed by Europe at 9.1% then Latin America (excluding Mexico) and the Caribbean at 6.7%. African rice exporters was responsible for a smaller percentage at 1.6%.
The 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix for rice is 1006.
Rice Exports by Country
Countries
Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of rice during 2016:
- India: US$5.3 billion (28.9% of total rice exports)
- Thailand: $4.4 billion (23.7%)
- United States: $1.9 billion (10.4%)
- Vietnam: $1.4 billion (7.4%)
- Pakistan: $905.5 million (4.9%)
- Italy: $565 million (3.1%)
- Uruguay: $426.8 million (2.3%)
- China: $350.9 million (1.9%)
- Cambodia: $346.8 million (1.9%)
- Brazil: $251.9 million (1.4%)
- Belgium: $241.8 million (1.3%)
- Argentina: $212.5 million (1.2%)
- Paraguay: $196 million (1.1%)
- Netherlands: $168.3 million (0.9%)
- Australia: $155.7 million (0.8%)
The listed 15 countries shipped 91.1% of all rice exports in 2016 (by value).
Among the above countries, five exporters grew the value of their rice shipments since 2012: Cambodia (up 148.9%), Paraguay (up 66.4%), China (up 29%), the Netherlands (up 3.7%) and Belgium (up 1.3%).
Those countries that posted declines in their exported rice sales were led by Vietnam (down -63%), Australia (down -56.2%), Brazil (down -53.9%) and Pakistan (down -51.9%).
Advantages
The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for rice during 2016. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the surplus between the value of each country’s rice exports and its import purchases for that same commodity.
- India: US$5.3 billion (net export surplus down -13.3% since 2012)
- Thailand: $4.4 billion (down -5.6%)
- Vietnam: $1.3 billion (down -63.3%)
- United States: $1.2 billion (down -10.4%)
- Pakistan: $870.3 million (down -52.6%)
- Uruguay: $424.7 million (down -24%)
- Italy: $422.6 million (down -21.4%)
- Cambodia: $341 million (up 176.1%)
- Argentina: $207.7 million (down -30.3%)
- Paraguay: $194.7 million (up 66.4%)
- Myanmar (Burma): $100.2 million (down -55%)
- Guyana: $96.3 million (down -51%)
- Spain: $61.7 million (down -51.7%)
- Greece: $48.7 million (down -14.4%)
- Australia: $17.3 million (down -91.7%)
India has the highest surplus in the international trade of rice. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms India’s strong competitive advantage for this specific product category.
Opportunities
The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for rice during 2016. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the deficit between the value of each country’s rice import purchases and its exports for that same commodity.
- China: -US$1.2 billion (net export deficit up 44.7% since 2012)
- Saudi Arabia: -$911.3 million (down -15%)
- Benin: -$763.3 million (up 145.8%)
- United Arab Emirates: -$593.5 million (up 15.8%)
- Indonesia: -$531 million (down -43.8%)
- Iran: -$523.5 million (down -55.8%)
- Iraq: -$516.7 million (down 0%)
- Japan: -$406.7 million (down -6.1%)
- France: -$391.1 million (down -3%)
- United Kingdom: -$387.7 million (down -19.8%)
- Côte d’Ivoire: -$379.6 million (down -43.4%)
- Malaysia: -$357.2 million (down -40.9%)
- South Africa: -$342.9 million (down -43.9%)
- Mexico: -$318.2 million (down -13.6%)
- Canada: -$282.5 million (down -5.8%)
Partially due to its large population, China incurred the highest deficit in the international trade of rice. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights China’s strong competitive disadvantage for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for rice-supplying countries that help satisfy the powerful demand.
Companies
Rice Exporting Companies
Below are bulk rice-supplying conglomerates that dominate the worldwide grain trade (73% of the global market in 2003, according to OXFAM researchers). Shown within parenthesis is the country where the company is headquartered.
- Cargill (United States)
- Archer Daniels Midland (United States)
- Bunge (United States)
- Louis Dreyfus (France)
According to global trading platform Alibaba, the following companies are also examples of rice-trading companies located in the country shown within parentheses:
- Navdurga Rice Mill (India)
- Nakornton Rice Co., Ltd. (Thailand)
- PAK Rice Village (Pakistan)
- Sunrise Foodstuff Joint Stock Company (Vietnam)
- AEDI’ S.R.L. (Italy)
- Trade BEVAR S.A. (Brazil)
- Sichuan Deyi Green Foods Group Co., Ltd. (China)
Searchable List of Rice Exporting Countries
You can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icon at the top of any of the columns below.
| Rank | Exporter | 2016 Rice Exports | % World Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | India | US$5.3 billion | 28.9% |
| 2. | Thailand | $4.4 billion | 23.7% |
| 3. | United States | $1.9 billion | 10.4% |
| 4. | Vietnam | $1.4 billion | 7.4% |
| 5. | Pakistan | $905.5 million | 4.9% |
| 6. | Italy | $565 million | 3.1% |
| 7. | Uruguay | $426.8 million | 2.3% |
| 8. | China | $350.9 million | 1.9% |
| 9. | Cambodia | $346.8 million | 1.9% |
| 10. | Brazil | $251.9 million | 1.4% |
| 11. | Belgium | $241.8 million | 1.3% |
| 12. | Argentina | $212.5 million | 1.2% |
| 13. | Paraguay | $196 million | 1.1% |
| 14. | Netherlands | $168.3 million | 0.9% |
| 15. | Australia | $155.7 million | 0.8% |
| 16. | Spain | $154.1 million | 0.8% |
| 17. | Niger | $133.6 million | 0.7% |
| 18. | Myanmar (Burma) | $112.8 million | 0.6% |
| 19. | Germany | $106.7 million | 0.6% |
| 20. | Guyana | $96.4 million | 0.5% |
| 21. | United Arab Emirates | $83.7 million | 0.5% |
| 22. | Russia | $82.2 million | 0.4% |
| 23. | South Africa | $76.6 million | 0.4% |
| 24. | United Kingdom | $63.4 million | 0.3% |
| 25. | Greece | $63.1 million | 0.3% |
| 26. | France | $56 million | 0.3% |
| 27. | Taiwan | $51.2 million | 0.3% |
| 28. | Senegal | $46 million | 0.2% |
| 29. | Portugal | $44.4 million | 0.2% |
| 30. | Turkey | $40.4 million | 0.2% |
| 31. | Japan | $32.9 million | 0.2% |
| 32. | Laos | $31.3 million | 0.2% |
| 33. | Poland | $28.5 million | 0.2% |
| 34. | Singapore | $25.2 million | 0.1% |
| 35. | Egypt | $24.3 million | 0.1% |
| 36. | Bulgaria | $23.5 million | 0.1% |
| 37. | Malaysia | $20.2 million | 0.1% |
| 38. | Czech Republic | $18.7 million | 0.1% |
| 39. | Oman | $17.2 million | 0.1% |
| 40. | Kazakhstan | $15.9 million | 0.1% |
| 41. | Hong Kong | $14.5 million | 0.1% |
| 42. | Romania | $13.6 million | 0.1% |
| 43. | Denmark | $10.4 million | 0.1% |
| 44. | Suriname | $9 million | 0.05% |
| 45. | Slovenia | $8.7 million | 0.05% |
| 46. | Turks/ Caicos Islands | $8.5 million | 0.05% |
| 47. | El Salvador | $7.7 million | 0.04% |
| 48. | Canada | $7.2 million | 0.04% |
| 49. | Namibia | $6.9 million | 0.04% |
| 50. | Bangladesh | $6.1 million | 0.03% |
| 51. | Peru | $6 million | 0.03% |
| 52. | Saudi Arabia | $6 million | 0.03% |
| 53. | Austria | $5.8 million | 0.03% |
| 54. | Switzerland | $5.5 million | 0.03% |
| 55. | Brunei Darussalam | $4.9 million | 0.03% |
| 56. | South Korea | $4.8 million | 0.03% |
| 57. | Mexico | $4.6 million | 0.03% |
| 58. | Lithuania | $3.9 million | 0.02% |
| 59. | Macedonia | $3.8 million | 0.02% |
| 60. | Nicaragua | $3.7 million | 0.02% |
| 61. | Tanzania | $3.6 million | 0.02% |
| 62. | Sweden | $3.1 million | 0.02% |
| 63. | Hungary | $3 million | 0.02% |
| 64. | Costa Rica | $2.9 million | 0.02% |
| 65. | Sri Lanka | $2.8 million | 0.02% |
| 66. | St Vincent/Grenadines | $2.4 million | 0.01% |
| 67. | Kuwait | $2 million | 0.01% |
| 68. | Honduras | $1.7 million | 0.01% |
| 69. | Latvia | $1.5 million | 0.01% |
| 70. | Slovakia | $1.3 million | 0.01% |
| 71. | Lebanon | $1.2 million | 0.01% |
| 72. | Chile | $1.1 million | 0.01% |
| 73. | Morocco | $1 million | 0.01% |
| 74. | Mauritius | $963,000 | 0.01% |
| 75. | Zimbabwe | $907,000 | 0.005% |
| 76. | Indonesia | $864,000 | 0.005% |
| 77. | Côte d'Ivoire | $831,000 | 0.005% |
| 78. | Colombia | $830,000 | 0.005% |
| 79. | Burkina Faso | $745,000 | 0.004% |
| 80. | Guatemala | $732,000 | 0.004% |
| 81. | Botswana | $721,000 | 0.004% |
| 82. | Ukraine | $489,000 | 0.003% |
| 83. | Iran | $425,000 | 0.002% |
| 84. | Ireland | $419,000 | 0.002% |
| 85. | Mozambique | $410,000 | 0.002% |
| 86. | Tajikistan | $350,000 | 0.002% |
| 87. | Gambia | $344,000 | 0.002% |
| 88. | Philippines | $318,000 | 0.002% |
| 89. | Mongolia | $311,000 | 0.002% |
| 90. | Libya | $278,000 | 0.002% |
| 91. | New Zealand | $267,000 | 0.001% |
| 92. | Serbia | $248,000 | 0.001% |
| 93. | Nepal | $235,000 | 0.001% |
| 94. | Ecuador | $230,000 | 0.001% |
| 95. | Norway | $227,000 | 0.001% |
| 96. | Zambia | $215,000 | 0.001% |
| 97. | Estonia | $201,000 | 0.001% |
| 98. | Kenya | $170,000 | 0.001% |
| 99. | Luxembourg | $166,000 | 0.001% |
| 100. | Benin | $154,000 | 0.001% |
| 101. | Qatar | $150,000 | 0.001% |
| 102. | Croatia | $146,000 | 0.001% |
| 103. | Haiti | $142,000 | 0.001% |
| 104. | Kyrgyzstan | $141,000 | 0.001% |
| 105. | Madagascar | $141,000 | 0.001% |
| 106. | Finland | $140,000 | 0.001% |
| 107. | Maldives | $135,000 | 0.001% |
| 108. | Bolivia | $131,000 | 0.001% |
| 109. | Israel | $125,000 | 0.001% |
| 110. | Cyprus | $113,000 | 0.001% |
| 111. | Malawi | $109,000 | 0.001% |
| 112. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $64,000 | 0.0003% |
| 113. | Georgia | $63,000 | 0.0003% |
| 114. | Lesotho | $63,000 | 0.0003% |
| 115. | Belize | $61,000 | 0.0003% |
| 116. | Albania | $41,000 | 0.0002% |
| 117. | Togo | $32,000 | 0.0002% |
| 118. | Gabon | $29,000 | 0.0002% |
| 119. | Nigeria | $29,000 | 0.0002% |
| 120. | Belarus | $28,000 | 0.0002% |
| 121. | Panama | $27,000 | 0.0001% |
| 122. | Swaziland | $27,000 | 0.0001% |
| 123. | Uzbekistan | $26,000 | 0.0001% |
| 124. | Malta | $24,000 | 0.0001% |
| 125. | Afghanistan | $23,000 | 0.0001% |
| 126. | Fiji | $23,000 | 0.0001% |
| 127. | US Minor Outlying Is. | $23,000 | 0.0001% |
| 128. | North Korea | $21,000 | 0.0001% |
| 129. | Algeria | $14,000 | 0.0001% |
| 130. | French Polynesia | $12,000 | 0.0001% |
| 131. | Syrian Arab Republic | $12,000 | 0.0001% |
| 132. | Yemen | $12,000 | 0.0001% |
| 133. | American Samoa | $10,000 | 0.0001% |
| 134. | Mali | $7,000 | 0.00004% |
| 135. | Barbados | $5,000 | 0.00003% |
| 136. | Ghana | $5,000 | 0.00003% |
| 137. | Sierra Leone | $5,000 | 0.00003% |
| 138. | Trinidad/Tobago | $4,000 | 0.00002% |
| 139. | New Caledonia | $3,000 | 0.00002% |
| 140. | Montenegro | $2,000 | 0.00001% |
| 141. | Jordan | $2,000 | 0.00001% |
| 142. | Iceland | $2,000 | 0.00001% |
| 143. | Democratic Rep. Congo | $2,000 | 0.00001% |
| 144. | Chad | $1,000 | 0.00001% |
| 145. | Guinea | $1,000 | 0.00001% |
| 146. | Bahrain | $1,000 | 0.00001% |
| 147. | Bermuda | $1,000 | 0.00001% |
See also Rice Imports by Country, Candy Sweets Exports by Country, Philippines Rice Imports by Country, Corn Exports by Country, Onions Exports by Country and Barley Exports by Country
Research Sources:
The World Factbook, Field Listing: Agriculture – Products, Central Intelligence Agency. Accessed on May 8, 2017
Trade Map, International Trade Centre. Accessed on May 8, 2017
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on May 8, 2017
Cereal Secrets, OXFAM Research Reports (August 2014), pp 9-10. Accessed on April 29, 2016
Alibaba’s supplier information for rice. Accessed on April 29, 2016
