What’s in the news?

• China has begun importing Indian rice for the first time in at least three decades due to tightening supplies from Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam and an offer of sharply discounted prices.
• India is the world’s biggest rice exporter and China the biggest importer. Beijing buys in around 4 million tonnes a year but has avoided purchases from India, citing quality issues.
• China’s traditional suppliers, such as Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar and Pakistan, have limited surplus supplies for export and were quoting at least $30 per tonne more compared with Indian prices.
• Thailand, the world’s second-largest rice exporter and key supplier to China, suffered a drought this year that has affected the rice crop. Its shipments in 2020 could fall to 6.5 million tonnes, the lowest in 20 years.

Border clashes

• The breakthrough comes at a time when political tensions between the two countries are high because of a border dispute in the Himalayas.
• India has since tightened rules for investments from China and banned dozens of Chinese mobile apps, including from tech giants Tencent, Alibaba and ByteDance.
• Although the public mood in India has been anti-China, the country has remained engaged with Indian businesses.

Reference:

1. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/china-buys-indian-rice-for-first-time-in-decades-as-supplies-tighten-india-trade-officials/article33229508.ece