Commerce Ministry to Sell 300,000 tons of Rice from Govt's Stock

The commerce minister has announced the sale of 300,000 tons from the government rice stock.

Rice sellers are complaining that rice prices have dropped by 700 to 800 baht per ton in the two days since the announcement.

Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai is calling for a meeting on January 14 to discuss the sale of 300,000 tons of rice from the 6-million ton in the government stock as proposed by the Commerce Ministry's committee on rice policy.

According to the rice sellers, rice prices in the domestic market significantly decreased after the government announced the sale. On January 11 and 12, rice prices dropped by 700 to 800 baht per ton.

The price of 5 percent white rice has been lowered to between 16,800 and 17,000 baht per ton, a decrease from a price range of 17,500 to 17,800 baht per ton.

The price of 100 per cent white rice has dropped to 20,500 from 22,000 baht per ton, and the price of rice grist has decreased to between 12,000 and 12,200 baht per ton, from 13,000 baht per ton.

There has also been a rumor that the government is planning to sell 600,000 tons of rice from the stock for only 16,000 baht per ton, and that the rice-buyers are bribing the officials who authorize the sale at 500 baht per ton of rice sold.

As a result, many are closely monitoring the transactions.

Some have raised suspicion that the government is selling the rice for cheap in an effort to secure votes in preparation for the upcoming parliamentary censure debate.

It has not been confirmed whether or not the coalition parties are putting their support behind the sale of rice. In the past, there have been many attempts to block the sale of agricultural products in the government stock.

The government is planning to release the rice in the stock by the end of January, which is earlier than what many have predicted.

Many have anticipated that the government will start selling the rice by the end of February, to coincide with the end of the price-guarantee scheme.

Meanwhile, the International Rice Research Institute believes global rice prices will remain stable at around 600 U.S. dollars per ton.

The institute also predicts that droughts and floods in the near future will damage rice production in India and the Philippines.

As a result, they expect rice prices will never again be lower than 300 U.S. dollars.