LAST week, when I looked at international prices for Vietnam rice, well-milled (5-percent broken) was almost hitting the $650 per metric ton mark, whereas it was lower than $500 a few months ago. Similarly, it was reported that Thai 5-percent broken rice had breached $700 when it was less than $600 earlier this year.

Undeniably, the Indian government's decision to ban exports of non-basmati (white) rice triggered speculative activities in international rice trading. Indian rice constitutes 40 percent of total world export supply. Although non-basmati rice makes just a quarter of total Indian exports, it is still a substantial amount withdrawn from the world market.