Thailand to sell from stocks

The government is preparing to open bids to sell between 300,000 and 500,000 tonnes of rice in an attempt to bring down its high stockpiles.

Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai said a committee overseeing rice sales would meet next week to discuss the plan, with the maximum amount unlikely to exceed 500,000 tonnes.

The government is estimated to carry about 6 million tonnes of rice, 90% of which is new rice harvested from the 2008-09 season, with old rice from 2004-05 making up 10,000 tonnes.

Mrs Porntiva said the government's rice selling plan was unlikely to affect local rice prices, as rice prices have been high lately and the new bids would not be from overly large lots.

Chookiat Ophaswongse, the honorary president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association, agreed that now was an opportune time for authorities to shed state rice stocks, as world prices were strong and large volumes of paddy would not enter the market until the end of February and March when the country enters the second-crop season.

Mr Chookiat also urged the government to pay attention to opportunities to sell rice to Iran, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia.

Iran and Saudi Arabia each import about one million tonnes of rice a year and Malaysia about 900,000 tonnes.

Thailand recently secured an agreement to export up to 370,000 tonnes of duty-free rice to the Philippines as compensation for Manila's refusal to cut tariffs on the commodity