Vietnamese rice export prices have held at high levels in the past week thanks to demand in Southeast Asia and Africa. The trading firms were seeking low grade 15-percent and 25-percent broken rice to sell to African countries. In Asia, government sources said on Wednesday that the Philippines would hold a tender in June to buy 250,000 tonnes of 25-percent broken rice.

The crop totalled around 9 million tonnes of paddy, similar to last year, and is a good source of high quality 5-percent broken rice. Export prices of the grade ranged between $296 and $303 a tonne, free on board Saigon Port, against $298 to $305 last week.

Exporters did not offer 25-percent broken rice but indicative prices for the grain stood unchanged at $285 a tonne. The first trader said Vietnamese prices might rise in the next month after the end of the harvest while India and Pakistan did not have much to offer.

However, the affected areas are far from the key rice-growing region further south. While prolonged rains may slow rice loading at Saigon Port, progress at the port this week has been smooth, traders said. Nine vessels have been loading 112,200 tonnes of rice for Iran, the Philippines, Indonesia and Cuba. Last week five vessels left with 36,300 tonnes of rice for Indonesia and the Philippines.