Tokyo, Jan 18 - Japan and China have reached a basic agreement to allow Tokyo to resume exports of rice, halted since 2003, Japan's Kyodo news service reported on Thursday.
China halted rice imports from Japan after it revised its quarantine guidelines, citing concerns that harmful insects might enter the country through rice shipments.
Kyodo quoted Farm Minister Toshikatsu Matsuoka, who flew to Beijing this week to discuss a range of farm issues, as telling reporters there that broad agreement had been reached and that further details would be discussed.
Tokyo farm ministry officials could not immediately confirm the report.
A ministry official said Japan exported a total of 449 tonnes of rice in 2002, excluding shipments for aid purposes.