Rice prices rise in Arakan State ahead of Thingyan

By Admin 11 Apr 2023

DMG Newsroom
11 April 2023, Sittwe

The price of a bag of rice in Arakan State has increased by up to K10,000 per sack ahead of the Thingyan holiday period, according to local rice merchants.

Since the second week of April in Sittwe, the price of a sack of Paw Hsan Mwe rice has increased by over K10,000, from K70,000 to K81,000, and a lower grade rice variety has also risen by about K10,000, from K60,000 to K70,000.

“Locals buy rice to do good deeds during Thingyan. It can be said that people are buying a little more rice than usual,” said U Tha Zan Hla, a rice dealer in Sittwe.

Rice mills and rice shops will be closed during Thingyan, so retailers and wholesalers are stockpiling the staple grain, according to rice merchants. In addition, some are stockpiling rice as they are worried that the price of rice will rise in the post-Thingyan period.

“Rice sales are better these days. Some people buy and store rice to sell during Thingyan. Few people buy rice to eat at home. We sell more Paw Hsan Mwe rice than low-grade rice,” said U Tha Tun Hla, a rice trader in Sittwe.

During this year’s growing season in Arakan State, paddy yields reportedly decreased by as much as 50 percent due to a combination of climate change, high input costs, and soaring fertiliser prices.

The Arakan State Rice Millers Association predicts that the price of rice in the domestic market will continue to rise, and may rise even more after Thingyan.

“The government has been notified to control the rise in rice prices and to ensure domestic rice food sufficiency in the coming rainy season,” said an official from the Arakan State Rice Millers Association. “Although the government is aware of the domestic rice price implications, it is not yet known what to do about the rise in rice prices.”

Poor and middle-income households in Myanmar, meanwhile, have been facing livelihood hardships amid soaring commodity prices and job scarcity blamed largely on the military’s February 1, 2021, coup.

“The price of food products went up and the people suffered due to the country’s political turmoil. The grassroots like us may go to a position where we will go hungry while working,” said Ko Aung Thu Min, a local man in Sittwe.

There are over 60 rice sales centres in Sittwe, with rice produced in Arakan State also shipped to Myanmar’s larger cities, including Yangon, as well as being exported to Bangladesh.