Rice prices in Thailand

Below are reported prices for Thai rice for the past week.

Thai 100% grade B

02/07 $740-$840
03/07 $740-$839
04/07 $740-$839
08/07 $760-$840

Parboiled 100% sortexed

02/07 $790-$900
03/07 $790-$900
04/07 $790-$900
08/07 $790-$900

In vietnam, the prevailing price for 5% rice has been $750-$800.

All prices per Metric Ton, FOB port of loading.

Analysis of long grain rice market

Thailand. Given government's support scheme aimed at purchasing paddy from growers at 14.000 Bath, milled rice could have a floor at $700, the corresponding price for milled rice.

India. Predictions for coming harvests are good, so there are chances the export ban might be lifetd.

Vietnam. Official minimum export price has been cut by 2.5 percent to $780 per tonne due to slow export demand. Privately, traders say prices are already lower than this.

Thai prices weaker

Competition from Vietnam and a weaker Bath are keeping Thai ric eprices
under pressure; therefore, monday offers were on average lower by $20/ton
than a week before.

Thai 100% grade B was offered at $740-$840/ton;
Parboiled 100% sortexed was offered at $790-$900/ton.

Prices, free-on-board basis, Bangkok.

AFET to offer Hom Mali futures trading

AFET, Agricultural Futures Exchange of Thailand, preparing to introduce trading of Thai Hom Mali Rice Grade B contracts on July 14. Thai Hom Mali Rice 100% Grade B contract would be traded under the symbol BHMR, with a contract size of 15 tonnes per unit. Trading would be allowed for both options as currently executed for 5% white rice. Under the both-options regime, traders are allowed to settle contracts in cash or by physical delivery. In the past, only cash settlements were allowed.

Hom Mali exports have grown steadily by 10% on average over the last three years, with last year's figure reaching 1.864 million tonnes. For the first five months of this year, Hom Mali shipments amounted to 917,000 tonnes, up 21% from a year earlier. Last year, three of the top 10 Hom Mali importers _ Senegal, Ivory Coast, and Ghana _ were in Africa. Senegal alone imported up to 540,000 tonnes.

Asian Rice: Prices Unch-Up On Steady Demand Amid Tight Supply

Indicative prices of Asian rice were steady to higherThursday on steady demand from consumers amid tight export inventories inThailand and Vietnam. In Thailand, buyers and traders were making inquiries, but most suppliersweren't providing price indications as local prices have been steadily on therise, exporters said. "Domestic prices are increasing not just on a daily basis but on hourlybasis. Morning prices are different from afternoon prices," one exporter said. Most suppliers are reluctant to sign new contracts as they could lose moneydue to unpredictable local prices, exporters said. At the same time, most suppliers are busy securing supplies to fulfilloutstanding contracts, they added. "We haven't been responding to inquiries because we have been busy withpending shipments. People are now lining up for supply," another exporter said. Most exporters won't be able to make offers until next month when the bulk ofa new crop will have been harvested, exporters said. The new crop, which farmers have started to harvest, is expected to yieldaround 3.3 million metric tons of rice, they said. Thai 100% grade B was indicated at $570 per ton, free-on-board Bangkok; 5%broken at $560/ton, FOB and parboiled at $620/ton, FOB. These prices are$10-$20 higher than prices indicated Wednesday.

Asian Rice:Prices Rise Sharply On Tight Supply, Fresh Demand

Asian physical rice indicative export prices were sharplyhigher Wednesday from Friday, boosted by fresh demand from the Philippines amidtight supplies in most origins, exporters said. Offers made at a Philippine National Food Authority tenderTuesday, at prices50% higher compared to contract prices signed in January, have lifted exportprices in Thailand, Bangkok-based exporters said. (Thailand and Vietnam are thetwo top rice suppliers to the Philippines.) "Prices at the Philippine tender have set the trend for other prices. If(low-quality) 25% broken was being offered at $600 a metric ton, FOB, whatshould the prices of other varieties be?" an exporter asked.
Meanwhile, most Thai suppliers aren't keen on signing new deals as domesticprices are at lofty levels. "No one is willing to sign forward contracts because prices could rise by$100 in a matter of days," a second exporter said. Thai 100% grade B was indicated at $556-$560/ton, FOB Bangkok; 5% broken at$544-$550/ton, FOB and parboiled at $600-$604/ton, FOB. These prices are about$50 higher from prices indicated Friday. However, the exporters added actual offers would be higher by $20/ton asindicative prices don't include the suppliers' profit.

Manila rice auction fails to attract enough bids

A Philippine rice auction attracted only around 335,500 tons of tenders, below the 550,000 tons required, and at high prices, Reuters calculations on Tuesday showed. Prices ranged from $618.5-$745 a ton, including cost and freight, from 10 bidders. At the government's last rice tender in January, the average price was $474.41 per ton. Vina Foods submitted the largest tender of 128,000 tonn, to be sourced from Thailand, Vietnam and Pakistan. The other trading firms said the would source their bids from the same three countries and China.

Inland container depots reject rice cargoes

The latest Government of India decision to restrict export of both basmati and non-basmati rice through four select ports of JNPT, Mumbai, Kakinda and Kolkatta has led to a piquant situation as the basmati rice exporters from Delhi are unable to send their cargo through the Inland Container Depots (ICDs).
Exporters told Business Line here that since the notification of March 5, 2008 has not clarified about export of basmati and non-basmati rice exports through the ICDs which are deemed dry ports, customs authorities in the ICDs here are not accepting the basmati rice export cargo in ICDs for the needed customs clearance of the goods. Since the notification was issued, no rice cargo export has supervened from the ICD ports, they said, adding that they would meet the DGFT for clarification.

Stock checks ordered to detect rice hoarding

Commerce Minister Mingkwan Sangsuwan yesterday ordered a blanket survey of the government's rice stockpile nationwide and threatened to take legal action if grain was found missing.
Chookiat Ophaswongse, president of the Rice Exporters Association, said the stock survey could be a signal that the ministry may be planning to do something to address rising rice prices.
''We expect that the government is planning to release its stockpile, particularly for 5% white rice and low-grade rice which is used to produce animal feeds and noodles, to help local consumers,'' he said.
Deputy Commerce Minister Wiroon Techapaiboon said last week he would propose auctioning about 700,000 tonnes of rice in government stockpiles to help ease tight supplies, as the release of second-crop output is still relatively small.

Egypt hikes rice export duty

Egypt has raised the export duty on rice to 300 Egyptian pounds ($54.84) a tonne, from 200 pounds, the state news agency Mena said on Saturday.

Egypt introduced the duty last September to ensure supplies of rice to the local market and hold down domestic prices. Mena said trade and industry minister Rachid Mohamed Rachid had increased the duty in response to higher world prices.

The retail price of local rice has risen by up to 30 per cent in recent months, along with sharp rises in the prices of other staple foodstuffs. The government tried to persuade rice dealers to impose their own voluntary restrictions on exports but the prices on offer abroad were too high to resist, said an expert familiar with the rice trade