Thailand to export more rice to China

NONTHABURI, THAILAND, March 22 (TNA) - The government, through the Ministry of Commerce, eyes to export additional one million tonnes of Thai rice to China under another government-to-government (G-to-G) deal. Duangporn Rodphaya, Director-General of the ministry’s Department of Foreign Trade, told journalists on March 21 that a negotiation with the Chinese government on the issue has been set in early next month. Duangporn said Beijing has earlier bought one million tonnes of Thai rice with the last shipment for the lot, amounting 130,000 tonnes, is scheduled to be delivered in May 2016. Currently, Duangporn noted, the Thai government sells Thai rice under the G-to-G basis to China, Indonesia and the Philippines only. According to the senior official, her ministry, however, plans to sell Thai rice to several other markets, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Iraq, Iran, the Philippines, Africa and the United States, in order to meet a target of Thai rice exports at 9.5 million tonnes this year. The senior official revealed that Thailand has exported 2.3 million tonnes of rice, worth about 37.33 billion baht, since the beginning of this year until March 17, up 28 and 24 per cent respectively year-on-year. However, the senior official acknowledged, concerned authorities plan to launch a rice auction plus donation to reduce a remaining stockpile of some 12 million tonnes of rice at the government’s warehouses, with interested agencies having to apply within next month. (TNA)