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The latest forecast has recently been released as part of the USDA’s May 2021 Report about the Global Rice Outlook for 2022.

The report details that the global rice output in the 2021 – 2022 crop will hit a record high of 505.4 million tonnes of milled rice, an increase of 1.9 million tonnes compared to the 2020 – 2021 crop.

Most notably, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Cambodia, China, the Ivory Coast, the Republic of Korea, Paraguay, Taiwan (China), and Thailand will all witness rises in their respective rice output.

In contrast, Colombia, Ecuador, India, Iraq, Madagascar, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, the US, and Vietnam are all projected to record a lower output.

After two consecutive years of maintaining its position as the world’s second largest rice exporter, Vietnam will rank third in terms of global rice exports next year, behind India and Thailand.

In line with the rice industry restructuring scheme until 2025, Vietnam is aiming to export approximately five million tonnes annually.

This decrease is attributed to the local rice industry’s shifting from quantity to quality, with a specific focus on improving the value and brand of Vietnamese rice among in international market.

Rice exporters have gradually begun to shift their proportion of white rice varieties to high-quality fragrant rice, while simultaneously focusing on high-end markets such as the EU, the US, and Japan.

Nguyen Van Thanh, director of Phuoc Thanh IV Trading and Production Co., Ltd, says his firm has recently turned to exporting fragrant and high-quality rice, adding that along with traditional Asian markets, the company has is seeking to reap benefits from the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement – EU (EVFTA).

Similarly, Pham Thai Binh, general director of Trung An High-Tech Agriculture Joint Stock Company, reveals that since the beginning of the year, the firm has continuously won bids to ship rice to Asian countries and the EU.

Binh added that Trung An rice is now being traded at the relatively high level of over US$578.5 per tonne.

Source: VOV

Medical workers take COVID-19 samples from residents in residential area No 1 in Ward 15, HCM City’s Gò Vấp District. VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — HCM City broke its record daily increase of new COVID-19 cases on Friday with 149 locally-transmitted infections. A day earlier, it reported 137 cases, according to the Health Ministry.

Việt Nam confirmed 264 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, including five imported and 259 locally-transmitted infections.

Among the domestic infections, 149 were found in HCM City, 76 in Bắc Giang, 16 in Bắc Ninh,12 in Bình Dương, three in Hà Tĩnh, two in Hòa Bình and one in Lào Cai. Of them, 232 were detected in quarantine or locked down areas.

So far, the country has recorded 12,414 COVID-19 cases, including 10,755 domestic and 1,669 imported infections. The number of cases since the fourth wave of the pandemic began on April 27 has reached 9,172.

The ministry said as many as 4,733 patients have recovered from COVID-19 so far, as 80 of them were given the all-clear on Friday. Meanwhile the death toll reached 62 as the latest death was reported on Friday afternoon.

Twenty-four provinces have gone 14 days without detecting new cases.

By Friday evening, nearly two million vaccine doses have been administered, with 89,833 people fully vaccinated with two shots. About 14-20 per cent of the vaccinated people experienced post-vaccination reactions, equal to the proportion stated by vaccine producers and the World Health Organization.

Regarding vaccination against COVID-19 for elderly people and people with underlying medical conditions such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity, Dương Thị Hồng, deputy director of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology said that they were among vulnerable groups facing a high risk of COVID-19 infection, so they needed to get vaccinated. However, the vaccination would be delivered to them only when they were in stable health conditions with health indicators in normal limits, Hồng said.

HCM City’s vaccination drive with nearly 800,000 vaccine doses donated by Japan to Việt Nam would begin on Saturday. —VNS

Ambassador of Belarus to Việt Nam, Mr. Vladimir Goshin

On behalf of the Embassy of Belarus in Việt Nam I would like to congratulate the editorial board of the Việt Nam News on the 30th anniversary of its foundation and wish further impetuous development, bright and positive news as well as creative inspiration.

Ambassador of Belarus to Việt Nam, Mr. Vladimir Goshin. Courtesy Photo of the embassy

The Việt Nam News was the first printed periodical that I got to know closely after my arrival in Việt Nam as the Ambassador. And since then the Embassy has been regularly subscribing to the newspaper, which in my opinion is an important source of information. We highly appreciate the editorial office’s position on prompt and honest coverage of the events in the country, current social, political, economic, humanitarian and other projects, including, for example, information on measures taken to combat against COVID-19.

In the contemporary world there are too many various fakes and unfair usage of information in political campaigns aimed at forming a false perception of reality in the interests of certain social groups or states. I would like to highlight the high level of professionalism of the Việt Nam News correspondents who have cooperated with the Embassy over the past few years. I sincerely express my appreciation to the external information service for objective publications about the events in the world and Belarus in particular.

Let the talent, creativity, competence and dedication of the Việt Nam News team continue to serve the noble mission and the peoples of Belarus and Việt Nam would always get only the latest and kind news about the relations between our two friendly countries.

Health authorities recorded almost 150 locally-transmitted coronavirus infections in Ho Chi Minh City on Friday, as Vietnam has been struggling with the fourth transmission wave – and the worst so far – since late April.

One hundred and forty-nine cases were detected in the community, the municipal Center for Disease Control (HCDC) said in a report.

This is the biggest-ever daily case increase the city has reported since the virus first emerged in the country early last year.

The patients were related to about 20 transmission chains, with a dozen cases showing no clear source of infection.

The southern economic hub has found 1,346 community cases since April 27, when the fourth virus wave broke out in Vietnam.

The pathogen is silently spreading in the community so everyone should adhere to social distancing rules, reinstated on May 31, and limit unnecessary interactions, the HCDC said.

Those finding that they are at risk of infection should immediately contact local medical providers for help, it added.

The Ministry of Health documented 259 local COVID-19 cases nationwide on Friday, including 149 in Ho Chi Minh City, 76 in Bac Giang Province, 16 in Bac Ninh Province, 12 in Binh Duong Province, three in Ha Tinh Province, two in Hoa Binh Province, and one in Lao Cai Province.

A total of 232 cases were logged in quarantined or isolated areas, the ministry noted, adding 80 recoveries were recorded the same day.

Vietnam has registered 9,173 domestic infections in this wave, 1,840 of which has been found since Monday.

Bac Giang is leading with 5,083 patients, followed by Bac Ninh with 1,470 and Ho Chi Minh City.

By comparison, Vietnam confirmed 106 community cases in the first wave from January 23 to April 16, 2020, 554 in the second from July 25 to December 1, 2020, and 910 in the third from January 28 to March 25, 2021.

The Southeast Asian nation has reported an aggregate of 12,414 patients, including 10,742 local and 1,672 imported cases.

The number of recovered patients stands at 4,733 while 62 have died, most having suffered critical underlying conditions.

Nearly two million AstraZeneca vaccine shots had been administered and almost 90,000 people had been fully inoculated by Thursday, according to the health ministry’s data.

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A mass coronavirus inoculation drive with over 800,000 AstraZeneca vaccine doses will be carried out in Ho Chi Minh City on Saturday at around 1,000 vaccination points, a high-ranking health official has said.

Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Truong Son made the statement on Thursday when he joined the municipal Pasteur Institute to inspect the storage of 836,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine jabs having been allocated by the central government to the city.

These doses, developed by British-Swedish firm AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford, are among nearly one million shots of the vaccine the Japanese government donated to Vietnam on Wednesday.

This allocation reflected a priority the government and the National Vaccine Steering Board has given to the nine-million-strong city to help it expand the immunization coverage and thereby drive back the increasing COVID-19 spread, which has so far affected the entire southern city, Deputy Minister Son said.

The vaccine doses underwent required tests lasting for 48 hours at the Vaccine Testing Institute for safety certification before use, the deputy minister said.

The vaccination drive is expected to start on Saturday at 1,000 points of inoculation citywide and will last for five or seven days, making it the largest-ever mass COVID-19 immunization in the city.

The inoculation will be intended for priority subjects designated by the government and others including essential service providers, teachers, health workers, people working at administrative agencies, people over 65 years old, and workers at industrial parks and export processing zones.

Each point will vaccinate 200 people per day, which means a total of 200,000 people can receive injections per day.

City authorities have drawn up a plan to mobilize all possible health workers and facilities for the mass inoculation, the deputy minister said, adding that lists of vaccination must be made available within Friday.

“It is a principle that this mass immunization is conducted quickly but must ensure absolute safety for vaccinated people,” Son requested.

Ho Chi Minh City health authorities recently reported that around 11,000 locals have been vaccinated since June 3, bringing the total number of inoculated people to about 84,000 since the city began its immunization program on March 8.

Nationwide, nearly two million vaccine shots had been administered and 90,000 people had received the full two doses by Thursday, according to the health ministry’s data.

The ministry confirmed 121 new coronavirus cases at noon on Friday, including 119 domestic and two imported cases, of which 59 were detected Ho Chi Minh City.

The new cases have taken the Southeast Asian country’s tally of patients to 12,352, including 62 deaths, since early 2020.

Since April 27, when the pandemic’s fourth wave appeared in Vietnam, the country has documented 9,114 domestic infections.

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