Aromatic rice exports deadline pushed to April 30

Business Desk :

The government has extended the deadline for exporting aromatic rice until April 30, allowing 21 companies additional time to complete their shipments, as the previous export window expired on last year.

A commerce ministry circular regarding the extension was issued on Thursday, which also noted that the minimum export price has been set at $1.60 per kilogramme. At an exchange rate of Tk 123 per dollar, this translates to approximately Tk 196.8 per kg.

Nargis Murshida, joint secretary (Export-1) of the ministry’s Export Wing, said the extension was granted following requests from exporters who failed to ship their allocated quantities within the previous deadline.

“This is a continuation of the approval given in June last year,” she said. On May 28, 2025, the ministry permitted 52 companies to export 5,800 tonnes of aromatic rice. Before that, on April 8, 2025, it approved 18,150 tonnes for 133 companies. In total, export approvals in two phases amounted to 23,950 tonnes.

Bangladesh began exporting aromatic rice in the fiscal year 2009-10. Exports were halted in 2022 amid domestic supply concerns. Previously, in October 2013, shipments were also suspended due to sharp price hikes in the local market.