Nineteen traders participated in the bidding for 183,000 tonnes of jasmine rice from the 2004-05 and 2005-06 harvest seasons and 100,000 tonnes of white paddy rice yesterday.

Foreign Trade Department director-general Apiradi Tantraporn said the ministry was quite satisfied with the bidding, because traders generally offered good prices.

"The ministry is confident of releasing these stockpiles in a bid to alleviate domestic demand shortage," she said.

The government's total rice stockpile reached 3 million tonnes, mainly white rice. The government plans to export more rice under government-to-government contracts, which is set to total 1 million tonnes this year.

Eleven traders offered bids for 180,000 tonnes of jasmine rice, which has not received DNA approval. CP Intertrade, the country's leading rice exporter, is likely to win the biggest lot of 77,940 tonnes of jasmine rice, as it offered the highest price, from Bt12,500 to Bt13,750 per tonne.

The second-highest bidder was Asia Golden Rice, which offered to purchase 25,829 tonnes at Bt12,100 a tonne.

A CP Intertrade representative said the rice would be supplied to the domestic market. The bidding price was suitable, because it also included transportation and rice-quality adjustment costs worth a combined value of Bt700 per tonne, said the representative.

"The ministry could not have bargained for higher prices of Bt15,000 to Bt16,000 a tonne, which is the going market rate, because the stock has been held by it for a long time," said a source.

Two traders offered bids for rice of proven quality. KC Rungruang Kaset bid for 1,992 tonnes at Bt16,360 a tonne, and Thai Ha bid for 946 tonnes at Bt14,600 a tonne.

The other six bidders offered bids for white paddy rice. Chaiyaporn Rice and Food Products offered to buy 52,600 tonnes at Bt10,205 a tonne, while Goldenline Business wanted 28,601 tonnes, and Capital Rice sought 24,597 tonnes.

Petchanet Pratruangkrai

The Nation