China places first order for Thai rice under last Dec’s G2G deal
CHINA has agreed to place the first purchase order for 100,000 tonnes of Thai rice under a government-to-government (G2G) contract for a total of one million tonnes, which was signed last December.
The order is for new-crop 5-per-cent white rice at a free-on-board price of US$399 (Bt14,085) per tonne for 25-kilogram sacks, and $394 per tonne for 50kg sacks.
Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn said yesterday that shipments of the first order under the G2G contract with China would be made this month and next.
She said the prices agreed were “quite good” as they reflected the market price and were higher than those of rival rice-exporting countries, such as $332 per tonne for Vietnamese rice and $335 for Pakistani rice.
“China’s purchase is a positive sign for new-crop rice during the harvest season. This will help increase sales of Thai rice and ensure that prices do not fall sharply during the main-crop harvest season,” she added.
To continue releasing stockpiled rice, the ministry will conduct a roadshow mission to promote sales in many countries, Apiradi said, adding that Thailand will also join the bidding to supply the Philippines, which is expected to hold an auction for the purchase of more foreign rice in the near future.
Meanwhile, the Kingdom is revamping its Thai jasmine-rice export standard, expanding it to more grades and giving each a different name in order to promote strong growth of Thai Hom Mali Rice exports in particular, as well as ensure differentiation between Thai fragrant rice and other countries’ grains.
Duangporn Rodphaya, director-general of the ministry’s Foreign Trade Department, said Thailand needed to revise its jasmine-rice export standard in order to increase export opportunities in response to the differing needs of consumer groups across markets.
“The new standard will better serve consumers in different markets, as consumer behaviour has changed. Some markets may prefer a high-quality grade of jasmine rice at any retail price, while others may still prefer jasmine rice, but at a lower price due to their purchasing power,” she explained.
The new standard will come into effect in December, with the ministry introducing three grades for Thai jasmine rice.
For the upper market, there will be 92-per-cent jasmine rice, with this premium grade called Thai Hom Mali Rice.
For the middle market, there will be 80-per-cent jasmine rice, which will be called Thai Jasmine Rice, Thai Fragrant Rice or Thai Aromatic Rice.
This category will focus on competing with other countries’ fragrant rice, serving as a “fighting brand” for Thai jasmine rice as its price will be lower than that for Thai Hom Mali Rice, Duangporn said.
For the lower market, the Commerce Ministry will open an opportunity for other Thai fragrant-rice combinations in order to serve the different demands of each market.
However, the government will stringently control rice quality, with traders not being permitted to call combination fragrant rice Thai Hom Mali Rice, she stressed.
