Indonesia 2023 rice output down 1.4% - 2024-02-29

JAKARTA, March 1 (Reuters) - Indonesia's rice output in 2023 was 31.10 million metric tons, down 1.39% from a year earlier, data from the country's statistic bureau showed on Friday.

For the January-April 2024 harvest period, rice output is seen at 10.71 million tons, the bureau estimated, down 17.52% from the same period last year.

Output was affected by the El Nino dry weather pattern last year, the bureau said. The weather affected the size of rice producing areas, which is expected to shrink by around 16% in January-April.

Indonesian authorities are boosting rice imports on expectations of lower output. (Reporting by Fransiska Nangoy, Stefanno Sulaiman, Stanley Widianto)