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 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 per tonne for 25-kilogram sacks, and $394 per tonne for 50kg sacks. Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn said on October 11 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.
