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The Commerce Ministry will ask the National Rice Policy Committee to add Bt800-Bt1,000 per tonne to the pledging price for jasmine rice 105.

Farmers in Nakhon Sawan, who grow the fragrant rice, have urged the ministry to hike the mortgage price to the same level as for jasmine rice harvested in the Northeast. They claim jasmine rice 105 has been certified by the Agriculture Department as the same strain as jasmine rice from the Northeast in terms of DNA. However, its smell is not as strong as the Northeast's jasmine rice and has a bigger seed.

This year's crop of Nakhon Sawan jasmine rice is expected to reach 350,000 tonnes.

The government has fixed guaranteed prices for jasmine rice at three levels - Bt15,000 for jasmine rice from the Northeast, Bt14,000 for jasmine rice 105 and Bt13,000 for other kinds. - The Nation.

One-Two-Go to resume flights on Dec 5

One-Two-Go Airlines, which suffered the country's worst air crash in almost a decade last year, will resume flights next month, following a five-month suspension.

The budget carrier will restart flights on December 5, Udom Tantiprasongchai, CEO of Orient Thai Airline, One-Two-Go's parent, said yesterday. The airline will initially run about six daily flights between Bangkok and five provinces, including Phuket and Chiang Mai, he said.

One-Two-Go is restarting as tourist arrivals are tumbling amid anti-government street protests and a global recession.

The government grounded the airline in July after one of its passenger planes broke into two and burst into flames on landing on the resort island of Phuket, killing 90 people in September last year.

"The airline will also be subject to strict inspection to ensure it meets the commitment," said Chaisak Ungsuwan, director-general of the Air Transportation Department. - Bloomberg

$320m trade surplus posted with India

Thailand has scored a trade surplus with India thanks to low duties on its exports.

Apiradi Tantraporn, director-general of the Foreign Trade Department, said yesterday that exports to India reached US$2.22 billion (Bt79 billion) while imports were $1.9 billion during the first eight months of the year. That brought the trade surplus with India to $320 million.

Major exports were engines, kerosene, diesel, palm oil, auto parts, compressors and natural rubber.

Exports under the Thai-Indian free-trade agreement's early-harvest programme covering 82 items have increased 23.3 per cent.

The two countries also agreed to add 200 more products to the early-harvest scheme, which lowered import duties to zero. - The Nation