Surplus stocks further sweeten sugar prices

Surplus stocks further sweeten sugar prices

Sugar prices in the domestic market will continue to decrease thanks to abundant supply, according to the Ministry of Finance's Price Control Department.

The commodity's price went down by roughly VND1,000 per kilo over September to VND19,000-23,000 per kilo.

The department said that 11 sugar mills had started producing the 2012/13 crop by the middle of last month and another seven mills would also begin production this month.

This crop's total output was estimated to exceed 100,000 tonnes, the department said.

Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang said that Viet Nam would also have to import 100,000 tonnes of sugar this year according to the country's commitment to the World Trade Organisation.

Hoang said that the ministry accepted an import quota of 70,000 tonnes in August, adding that the ministry would work closely with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Viet Nam Sugar Association to decide the most suitable time for granting sugar import quotas to avoid negatively impacting domestic production.

However, Hoang said that the country needed roughly 1.4 million tonnes of sugar yearly so he expected that the sugar import, since it accounted for only a small proportion of the country's total demand, would not significantly affect domestic production.

Sugar sales topped 47,600 tonnes between September 15 and October 15, roughly 25,800 tonnes lower than the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The increase provided domestic sugar producers with an inventory of 110,400 tonnes as of October 15.

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