By Manolo Serapio Jr

Takeaways by Bloomberg AIHide

• The Philippines will suspend rice imports for 60 days from Sept. 1 to support local farmers, according to Presidential Communications Office Secretary Dave Gomez.
• The move aims to protect farmers reeling from low paddy rice prices during the harvest, as stated by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
• The suspension is expected to pressure global prices and impact major suppliers, including India, Thailand and Vietnam, according to B.V. Krishna Rao, president of India’s The Rice Exporters Association.

The Philippines will suspend rice imports for 60 days from Sept. 1 to support local farmers, a move that could further pressure global prices as the top buyer of the grain pulls back from the market.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued the order to protect farmers reeling from low paddy rice prices during the harvest currently underway, Presidential Communications Office Secretary Dave Gomez said in a statement on Wednesday.

The announcement comes after Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. pushed for a temporary halt in imports of the national staple alongside an increase in rice import tariffs. He has said an influx of imported rice was hurting local producers and could force millers to shut operations.

The move marks a turnaround from earlier this year when the Philippines declared a food security emergency, citing an “extraordinary” rise in local rice prices that was fanning inflation. Supplies have since improved, cooling costs of the crop that accounts for about a 10th of the consumer price basket.

Manila’s measure may add to a global surplus that’s already pulled Asia’s benchmark rice price to an eight-year low. The country was projected to buy 5.4 million tons of rice in the 2025-26 season, topping purchases by other major importers like Vietnam and Nigeria, the US Department of Agriculture forecast last month.

Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said the 60-day suspension covers the country’s peak harvest season, when domestic supplies are adequate. Output of paddy rice, usually planted twice a year, reached 9.08 million tons in the first half of 2025. The government is targeting a record 20.46 million tons of output for the full year.

The president said it’s not yet time to discuss tariff increases on imported rice, according to Gomez. “We will still see if we need to resort to that,” he said.

The government last year cut the import duty on rice to 15% from 35% until 2028 in a bid to tame inflation. Rice prices in the Philippines dropped by a record 15.9% in July.

The decision to suspend rice imports while holding off on a tariff hike is a “measured response” to the challenges faced by farmers, Tiu Laurel said in a statement on Wednesday. “The suspension is a more calibrated action – one that we can quickly reverse if needed. It gives us the flexibility to act fast to protect both our farmers and our consumers. A premature tariff hike, on the other hand, could backfire and would take much longer to undo,” he said.

The suspension is expected to pressure global prices and impact major suppliers, including India, Thailand and Vietnam, according to B.V. Krishna Rao, president of India’s The Rice Exporters Association.

“Global rice prices may soften a little bit in the near term,” he said.

— With assistance from Pratik Parija

Published Date: August 8, 2025