Rice: Stocks
The grain with the deepest reserves, mostly in China
What this tab covers How much is left and how much is held. For minerals and energy: reserves, current output, years of supply and recycling for the top five countries. For farm commodities: production, ending stocks and stocks-to-use for the top five producers (USDA, October 2026). It also covers inventories and stockpiles.Top five producers: production and stocks (USDA, 2026/27)
| Country | Production | Share | Ending stocks | Stocks-to-use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| India | 147,000 | 27.6% | 57,000 | 38.3% |
| China | 147,000 | 27.6% | 106,500 | 71.2% |
| Bangladesh | 36,900 | 6.9% | 1,767 | 4.6% |
| Indonesia | 33,600 | 6.3% | 3,575 | 10.2% |
| Vietnam | 26,100 | 4.9% | 1,797 | 6% |
| World | 533,100 | 100% | 198,500 | 37% |
Stockholding and policy
India: buffer norms (Department of Food and Public Distribution, 2015) require central pool rice of 13.58 Mt on 1 April, 13.54 Mt on 1 July, 10.25 Mt on 1 October and 7.61 Mt on 1 January, including a 2 Mt strategic reserve. Actual central pool rice stocks were 38.61 Mt on 1 April 2026 (Daily Pioneer citing FCI, 7 May 2026), 40.31 Mt on 1 July 2026 and 39.05 Mt on 1 September 2026, with a further 30.75 Mt of unmilled paddy (about 20.6 Mt of rice at the 67% out-turn) held by FCI and state agencies (Business Today citing FCI, 8 Oct 2026). Paddy procurement was 72.07 Mt in KMS 2025-26, with a KMS 2026-27 estimate of 70.86 Mt (GKToday; Business Today). The common paddy MSP is Rs 2,369/quintal for 2025-26 and Rs 2,441 for 2026-27 (Cabinet, 13 May 2026). USDA puts India's total rice stocks at 59.0 Mt at end-2025/26, which is why rice has been sold to distilleries and through the Open Market Sale Scheme. China holds 105.5 Mt, about 52% of world rice stocks (USDA WASDE, Oct 2026), largely in Sinograin and provincial reserves bought at minimum purchase prices. Japan keeps a government reserve and released stockpiled rice in 2025 after retail prices rose sharply.
USDA's October 2026 WASDE puts world rice ending stocks for 2025/26 at 204.2 Mt (milled), a stocks-to-use ratio of 38.3%, up from 36.1% in 2024/25. That is the highest ratio among the major grains. China holds 105.5 Mt, about 52% of the total, and India keeps large public stocks too. These are policy stocks, held to steady domestic prices, not to supply the world. Paddy stores well, while milled rice deteriorates faster. Because only a small share of output is traded, a big headline cushion can coexist with a tight export market.
World stocks (USDA)
| Season | Production | Use | Ending stocks | Stocks-to-use | of which China |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | 542.2 | 530.9 | 191.6 | 36.1% | 55% |
| 2025/26 Est. | 545.6 | 533.1 | 204.2 | 38.3% | 52% |