Rice market gains momentum    Illustrative image (Source :VNA) The rice market is expected to continue gaining ground in export, as the Philippines plans to import a million tonnes in early 2016.  Earlier, after winning bids to sell 450,000 tonnes of rice to the Philippines and a million tonnes to Indonesia, Vietnam has seen rice export prices grow continuously.  A range of Vietnamese rice products, which have been exported at prices lower than Thailand’s for a long time, are now valued at 10 to 15 USD more per tonne than the same Thai products.  Businesses expect the prices to rise further once Indonesia starts importing rice.  According to the Vietnam Food Association, by October 20 Vietnam had shipped 4.5 million tonnes of rice abroad, reeling in more than 1.9 billion USD.  Increases in exports push domestic business transactions, as local merchants collect more goods to cater to rice exporters’ demands.  Domestic prices also rose across the Mekong Delta. Rice in Can Tho costs 400 VND per kilogram more than it did the previous harvest.-VNA