Indonesia Eyes Export Opportunities as Global Rice Prices Rise

Indonesia will seize the opportunity presented by rising global rice prices, Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman stated, citing a production surplus, abundant stocks, and the successful maintenance of domestic price stability. “Indonesia will take the gap when world rice prices rise, Indonesia will certainly take the gap because several countries are requesting imports. Negotiations are ongoing,” the Minister said in a statement from Medan, North Sumatra, on Thursday. Global rice prices have continued their upward trend. According to Trading Economics data, the world rice price in trading as of 15 July 2026 was recorded at 13.75 US dollars per hundredweight. This position is higher than on 23 June 2026, when it stood at 12.48 US dollars per hundredweight, after rising 2.21 percent to reach its highest level in more than a week. According to Amran, the rise in global rice prices presents an opportunity for Indonesia to expand its export markets because national production is in surplus and government rice reserves are plentiful. He explained that domestic rice prices remain stable despite the increase in global prices, supported by strong national stock availability resulting from increased domestic production. The government rice reserves managed by Perum Bulog currently stand at 5.3 million tonnes. Amran stated that this condition demonstrates Indonesia’s increasingly robust food security, enabling it to maintain national rice price stability amidst various challenges affecting the global food market. He revealed that several countries have submitted requests to import rice from Indonesia, and the exploration and negotiation process with the government is still ongoing. These countries include Malaysia and Singapore. Amran said President Prabowo Subianto’s directive is to maintain food self-sufficiency by increasing national production so that domestic needs remain met while simultaneously opening opportunities to strengthen exports. In addition to maintaining rice self-sufficiency, the government is also accelerating the downstream processing of the plantation, horticulture, and livestock sectors to increase added value, strengthen competitiveness, and drive national economic growth.