SINGAPORE/BANGKOK ¨C Rice supply is expected to fall this year as farmers cut planting acreage across Asia because of fertilizer shortages and soaring fuel costs resulting from the Iran war, with an emerging El Nino also set to squeeze output of the world's most consumed staple.
Rice is central to global food security, and even modest supply disruptions can ripple through countries, lifting prices and straining household budgets, particularly among price-sensitive consumers in Asia and Africa. The U.N. Food and Agriculture ?Organization (FAO) in April forecast rice output would expand by 2% to a record high in 2025/26.
The effects of the Iran war are impacting farmers in ?top exporters ?Thailand and Vietnam, as well as the import-reliant Philippines and Indonesia, growers and traders said. The war has cut fuel and ?fertilizer flows through the Strait of Hormuz, a key chokepoint that connects the Persian Gulf to global markets.
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