Italian Indica rice prices holding near record high ahead of harvest

Italian Indica rice prices were holding near record highs, supported by limited stocks and recent bad weather that may have delayed harvesting to the end of September, sources said July 8.

No indicative prices or offers for Indica rice were being reported, sources said. Farmers were not offering to the mills and mills were not offering to the market, one trader said.

Platts assessed Indica 5% WR and Arborio 5% WR at Eur1,050/mt and Eur1,400/mt, respectively, ex-works on July 5, according to S&P Global Commodity Insights data. Italy White Rice Indica 5% Broken ex-works Northern Italy first reached Eur1,000/mt in early June.

The recent bad weather, which may see the harvest delayed by up to three weeks, could see yields fall below average, sources said.

"Officially, there is still some Indica in the hands of farmers. Some millers probably have some in-house," an Italian source said, adding that while the last market price for Indica paddy was Eur600/mt, farmers were seemingly only willing to sell at Eur660-700/mt.

According to a source, levels were "not unusual" for the time of year. The Ente Nazionale Risi said July 2 that the remaining amount of paddy a year earlier was 23,142 mt and in 2022 it was 43,706 mt.

The option of importing rice from outside Europe was not practical given high freight costs, sources said.