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Published on April 19, 2008

Petchanet Pratruangkrai

The Nation

"Vietnam's offer was the real market price and reflected its production costs. The Philippines has been Hanoi's major importer for years, and Vietnam knows the market well," said Internal Trade Department director-general Yangyong Phuangrach.

Thai rice exporters expressed shocked on Thursday upon learning Vietnam had offered an exorbitant bid price for the sale of white rice to the Philippines. At a cost of US$1,200 (Bt37,700) per tonne, Thai exporters said the prices of other rice products would rise.

However, bidders are waiting for the Philippine government to decide whether to bargain for lower prices or cancel the bidding. The government opened bidding on Thursday for a combined 500,000 tonnes of 5-per-cent and 25-per-cent white rice.

Yangyong said Thai rice exporters should not worry about losses, because they were believed to have withheld 1.6 million tonnes of rice stocks. Of that, 800,000 tonnes are in their own warehouses and the rest in government warehouses.

As of Thursday, rice prices in Bangkok were Bt33,300 to Bt33,400 per tonne for grade-B jasmine rice, Bt26,000 to Bt26,050 for 100-per-cent white rice and Bt25,000 to Bt25,050 for 5-per-cent white rice.