Rice prices rise for a fifth day

Global rice prices have soared for a fifth successive day as the cyclone damage in Burma continues to put pressure on tight supplies.

The cost of rice rose by 3.5% to $22.35 per 100lb in early Thursday electronic trading on the Chicago Board of Trade, adding to similar rises in recent days.

Cyclone Nargis hit Burma on 3 May, killing tens of thousands of people and hitting the main rice-producing areas.

Rice prices were already at peak levels after bad harvests and higher demand.

Export limits

The price of US long-grain rice - the global benchmark - has now increased by more than 61% since the start of the year.

This increase has been replicated around the world, with Thai and Indian rice prices going up by similar levels.

The higher prices have been exacerbated by a number of key producing nations moving to set limits on rice exports to try to guarantee sufficient domestic supplies and calm internal prices.

World number one exporter Thailand has announced such a move, as have India, Bangladesh and Egypt.

Such export limits have raised concerns in key rice importers, such as the Philippines, which has said it will "aggressively" seek fresh supplies.

The prices of wheat and other basic foodstuffs such as maize and soya have also risen sharply, as weaker harvests have come at the same time as continuing population growth.

As a result, the Asian Development Bank has warned that one billion people across Asia are now at risk of malnutrition.

China is the world's biggest rice producer, but almost all of its crop is kept for the domestic market. With the world's largest population to feed, Beijing keeps rice prices subsidised.

While Burma is the world's sixth largest rice producer, it is less of an exporter because of the isolationist position of its military-run government.