MANILA — The Philippines has overtaken China as the world’s top rice importer, according to the latest report by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), as the country grapples with surging prices of the staple commodity.

The USDA’s latest “Grain: World Markets and Trade” report estimated that the total rice importation of the Philippines for the 2022-2023 trade year hit 3.9 million metric tons compared to China’s 3.5 million metric tons.