The rice importers in the UAE have asked authorities for a 35 per cent raise in the rate of retail rice.

The proposed increase, according to officials, is more than the 20 per cent slab approved by the Ministry of Economy.

The importers pointed out that the approved hike was not enough for them to continue supplying the local market.

'Due to high prices of rice in India and Pakistan, the producers that dominate the regional market are having difficulty in sourcing rice at current prices,' a trader was quoted as saying in The Gulf News.

'We have sustained losses for four months, we cannot afford any more,' said Harish Patel, managing director of Purvi Enterprises, a leading importer.

'There has to be a minimum 35 per cent increase in the price,' said Mohammad Khurram Iqbal, a marketing specialist at Unikai International.