Global rice production 'to outpace consumption'

Myanmar women harvest rice at a paddy field
 on the outskirts of Bago, north of Yangon

AFP - Global rice production for 2012 is forecast to outpace consumption this year and next because of a better-than-expected 2012 crop season, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said Monday.

"Compared to last year, world rice carryover stocks are expected to rise by seven percent, or 10 million tonnes, to a new high of almost 170 tonnes, marking the eighth consecutive year of stock accumulation," the FAO said.

It marks the eighth consecutive year of rice stock accumulation.

FAO raised its forecast for global production by 4.2 million tonnes because the season has been "progressing satisfactorily, especially after a revival of the monsoon rains since mid-August allayed fears of a repeat of the 2009 drought in India."

"Prospects improved not only for India, but also for Egypt, North Korea, the Philippines, the United States and Vietnam, while they worsened in Myanmar, Colombia and Senegal," the Rome-based agency said.