India has taken hold of Southeast Asia’s corn export market as freight charges and supply issues rule out North and South American sources.
India’s average export price in May 2021 was USD 243/ton, less than the US (USD 269/ton), Brazil (USD 304/ton), and Ukraine (USD 292/ton), says the September WASDE report.
This, combined with a domestic poultry sector slowdown, led to an explosive growth in Indian corn exports. India is forecast to ship 3.5mt of corn in 2020/21, mainly to Vietnam and Malaysia.
This shows an increasing trend of Asian players looking to regional sources to fulfil grain demand as logistics costs increase.
Vietnam and Malaysia are new entrants in the Indian corn market, which is usually dominated by neighbors such as Nepal and Bangladesh. Southeast Asia is looking closer to home as freight costs increase.