Vietnam’s rice race heats up with fresh push for quality gains
Statistics reveal that in the first seven months of 2025, Vietnam exported 5.5 million tonnes of rice worth 2.81 billion USD – volume up 3.1% but value down nearly 16% compared to the same period last year.
Hanoi (VNS/VNA) — Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s recent directive to boost rice exports underscores that Vietnam’s rice industry still faces significant challenges requiring long-term, sustainable solutions focused on quality and competitive advantage.
Having overtaken Thailand as the world’s second-largest rice exporter, Vietnam is now shifting its focus from sheer volume to high-value products. The PM has called for urgent action to tackle bottlenecks threatening this position.
According to Government Office Document No 7697/VPCP-NN, issued on August 18, the sector must confront risks including salinity intrusion, drought, climate change and strict regulatory barriers from demanding markets such as the EU and Japan.
“In the context of weakening global demand, forcing rice exporters to sharply lower prices, Vietnam’s competitiveness in prices will be narrowed down. This requires a long-term strategy with the focus shifting from increasing output to improving product value,” the PM emphasised.
Vietnam must prioritise exporting high-quality and organic rice with transparent traceability and a strong national brand, or risk losing its hard-won global ranking amid fluctuating supply and climate pressures.
The PM tasked the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment with crafting detailed plans to safeguard the country’s standing while accelerating a project to develop 1 million hectares of high-quality, low-emission rice fields by 2030.
Statistics reveal that in the first seven months of 2025, Vietnam exported 5.5 million tonnes of rice worth 2.81 billion USD – volume up 3.1% but value down nearly 16% compared to the same period last year.
The market faces pressure from India’s large mid-priced rice exports and the Philippines’ 60-day suspension of rice imports from September 1. The Philippines remains Vietnam’s largest rice importer.
Nonetheless, Vietnamese rice is expanding in stable markets such as Japan, the Republic of Korea, and the EU, thanks to speciality varieties like ST25.
꧒ Data from the Thai Rice Exporters Association confirms Vietnam exported 4.72 million tonnes in the first half of 2025, surpassing Thailand to become the world’s second-largest rice exporter. India leads with 11.68 million tonnes exported./.
Vietnamese Consul General in Hong Kong and Macau Le Duc Hanh noted that rice trade has long played a traditional and relatively stable role in Vietnam–Hong Kong commercial relations, stressing that the sector still has much potential for growth.
"We did not bring just seeds, but our hearts. Our greatest success is seeing Cubans confidently adopt these techniques, moving toward food self-sufficiency, said a Vietnamese expert.
Vietnam aims to improve the quality and value of export rice by reducing the proportion of low and medium-grade white rice while increasing the share of aromatic, Japonica, and specialty rice varieties.
The new tax regime of India is a landmark reform that promises to generate profound changes in India’s business landscape and will directly affect Vietnamese investors, producers, and exporters in this market.
Two-way trade between Vietnam and Cambodia reached 10.1 billion USD last year, while the figure in the first eight months of the year was 7.98 billion USD, up 16.3% year-on-year.
All businesses are eligible to participate in the programme without undergoing any selection or review process. Enterprises can independently launch promotional campaigns with diverse and appealing content for customers and are allowed to apply maximum discounts of up to 100%.
Singapore’s United Overseas Bank (UOB) has boosted its 2025 GDP growth forecast for Vietnam to 7.5% from 6.9%, pointing to the economy’s resilience and dynamism despite tariff risks and uncertainties.
Spanning 8.4ha of gross floor area and rising to 30m, the package requires advanced steel–concrete solutions, synchronised execution and accelerated progress within 330 days.
Through this partnership, VinFast Philippines, a subsidiary of Vingroup JSC, one of Vietnam's largest conglomerates, will leverage on BDO's comprehensive suite of financial solutions including cash management, consumer banking, leasing, and insurance services and create tailored financing programmes for both retail and corporate customers.
Under the new system, passengers without checked luggage simply check in via VNeID or a kiosk, undergo facial recognition at security, and board by scanning their face. Those with baggage drop it at a counter before entering the same automated flow.
Vietnam values its international partnerships, including with the UK, Finance Minister Nguyen Van Thang noted, urging UK companies, funds and financial institutions, and those from Europe and worldwide, to continue expanding investment, transferring know-how, sharing management experience and advancing green finance and technology to realise Vietnam’s sustainable development vision.
Vietnamese Minister of Finance Nguyen Van Thang expressed gratitude for the UK’s active role in supporting Vietnam’s efforts to draft a National Assembly resolution on creating an international financial centre. The City of London, he noted, provided pivotal insights and recommendations to shape the groundwork and development roadmap for this hub.
Vietnam is ready to deepen economic cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), China and other partners, embracing a strategy of “harmonised interests and shared risks” as it leverages its fast-growing economy and market of over 100 million people.
Tay Ninh, Nghe An and Quang Tri provinces have strategic locations and significant cooperation potential, said Nguyen Thi Thai Binh, Minister-Counsellor at the Vietnamese Embassy, expressing confidence that with creativity and determination, these provinces and their Korean partners will find ample opportunities for productive collaboration.
Jointly organised by the Vinexad National Trade Fair and Advertising JSC and Yorkers Exhibition Service Vietnam, the event features 1,200 booths of more than 650 exhibitors from 20 countries and territories, including Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Switzerland, Thailand, and the US.
Public investment should serve as a key driver of growth, acting as seed capital to catalyse and mobilise all social resources, thereby fostering economic expansion, creating jobs and livelihoods, and improving the material and spiritual well-being of the people, PM Pham Minh Chinh stated.
An official of the Foreign Trade Agency laid stress on the foundational role of rules of origin in international trade, highlighting the importance of capacity building for enforcement officers in the context of deep international integration.
Against the backdrop of the growing comprehensive strategic partnership between Vietnam and Russia, the promotion and export of Vietnam’s agricultural products not only diversify supply sources for the Russian market but also help enhance the brand values and competitiveness of Vietnamese enterprises in the market that remains untapped.
International trade is no longer merely an exchange of goods but a strategic lever enabling Vietnamese enterprises to enhance capacity, secure partnerships, and expand globally.
In the first eight months of 2025, Vietnam’s total trade value reached nearly 600 billion USD, up 16.3% year on year. Of this, exports stood at 306 billion USD, a 14.8% increase, already surpassing the full-year target.
Vietnam aims to maintain macroeconomic stability, control inflation below the target, achieve growth of 8.3-8.5%, ensure major economic balances, surpass budget revenue estimates by 25%, and control public debt, government debt, foreign debt, and budget deficit.
