Indonesia's rice output seen falling

Indonesia expects unmilled rice production to fall 2.3 percent to 53.13 million MT this year from 54.4 million MT in 2006 due to a decrease in planted area, the state statistics bureau said on Thursday.

The outlook is the first preliminary forecast of this year. Indonesia's statistics bureau (BPS) makes three projections on a quarterly basis every year. The forecast is far below the government's target of 58.18 million MT of unmilled rice in 2007.