Myanmar shipped 903,699 tonnes of corn worth US$271.321 million to foreign trade partners as of 1 December in the current financial year 2023-2024, beginning 1 April, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
Myanmar Corn Industrial Association forecast corn exports to reach over 2 million tonnes in the 2023 corn season, said U Min Khaing, the chairman of the association.
Following the FOB price dip, the corn prices stood at K1,080-1,100 per viss in the domestic market, according to the Yangon Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Bayintnaung Commodity Centre).
Myanmar delivers corn to China and Thailand through the border. Also, it ships corn to China, India, Viet Nam and the Philippines via maritime trade, according to the Myanmar Corn Industrial Association.
Thailand nodded corn imports under zero tariff (with Form-D) between 1 February and 31 August. However, Thailand imposes a maximum tax rate of 73 per cent on corn imports to protect the rights of their growers if the corn is imported during the corn season of Thailand.
China has been purchasing Myanmar’s corn through cross-border trade under the opium substitution programme. Legitimate corn trade between Myanmar and China commenced at the end of 2022. A total of 112 Myanmar companies have been permitted for corn exports.
Myanmar exported more than two million tonnes of corn to foreign trade in the 2022 corn season. Most of them were sent to Thailand, and the remaining went to China, India, the Philippines and Viet Nam.
The corn is cultivated in Shan, Kachin, Kayah and Kayin states and Mandalay, Sagaing and Magway regions. Myanmar has three corn seasons — winter, summer and monsoon. The country produces 2.5-3 million tonnes of corn every year. — NN/EM
