Several trading sources, who requested anonymity, told Reuters that exports of India’s premium Basmati rice, whose major markets include Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Iraq, declined by 7 percent during the first four months of the year.
India accounts for approximately 40 percent of global rice exports, and during the first four months of this year the country exported around 8.4 million tons of rice, of which 2.3 million tons consisted of Basmati rice.
Reuters did not provide detailed figures regarding the decline in Basmati exports. However, according to an analysis by Voice of America based on data from India’s Ministry of Commerce, India exported a combined 838,000 tons of Basmati rice during March and April, reportedly 25 percent lower than during the same period in 2025.
According to statistics from Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Iran’s rice production declined by 7 percent last year to 3.9 million tons, while its rice imports remained stable at 1.2 million tons.
