USDA GAIN: Oilseeds, Cotton, Sugar, Grain and Feed
06 March 2012
USDA GAIN: Thailand Weekly Rice Price 28 February 2012
Export prices were offered $5-10/MT higher due to the strengthening Thai baht. Meanwhile,
domestic prices remain steady due to a lack of new contracts for new-crop white rice. Thai rice exports
during March – June will be dominated by parboiled rice.
Export prices were offered $5-10/MT higher due to the strengthening Thai baht (30.3 baht/$, compared
to 30.6 baht/$ in the previous week). Meanwhile, domestic prices remain steady due to a lack of new
contracts, particularly for new-crop white rice, as Thai rice prices remain $100/MT above Vietnamese
rice. Thai white rice shipments will likely drop significantly in March as exporters reportedly fulfilled
the outstanding government-to-government contract of 300,000 tons of 15% grade new-crop white rice
with Indonesia. Thai rice exports during March – June will be driven by parboiled rice, especially to
Nigeria. Despite being around $120/MT above Indian parboiled rice, foreign buyers returned to Thai
parboiled rice for deliveries to Nigeria for June 2012 to avoid Nigeria’s higher applied import tariff rate
of 53% which will be effective in July 2012. Shipments of Indian parboiled rice contracts are
reportedly slow due to port congestion.
Presently, the Government is holding old-crop intervention stocks of around 2.0 million tons. The
current Paddy Pledging Program has accepted a total of 6.7 million tons of paddy (4.3 million tons
Bangkokmilled equivalent) from October 7, 2011 – February 26, 2012 (Table 2). This accounts for 31.0 percent
of the expected total MY2011/12 main-crop production of 21-22 million tons of paddy (14.5 million
tons milled equivalent). The Government expects the program will have absorbed only 7.0 million tons
of paddy (4.6 million tons milled equivalent) when it finishes on February 29, 2012, far below the
government’s initial target of 10.0 million tons of paddy. However, the Government will likely absorb
an additional 5-6 million tons of paddy (4.0 million tons milled equivalent) from the off-season crop
Paddy Pledging Program on March 1 – June 30, 2012. The Cabinet approved the off-season crop Paddy
Pledging Program on February 22, 2012. The amount of paddy that can be pledged is unlimited.
Rice Export Update
Unofficial rice exports (excluding fragrant rice) for February 20-26, 2012 totaled 126,345 tons, up 8,087
tons from the previous week, and up 19,558 tons from the four-week moving average of 106,787 tons.
Exports of white rice and parboiled rice during January1 – February 26, 2012 totaled 714,750 tons,
down 52.9 percent from 1,516,525 tons in the previous year.
According to the Department of Foreign trade, Ministry of Commerce, total rice exports (including
fragrant rice) during January 1 – February 23, 2012 amounted to 852,629 tons, down 50.4 percent from
1,719,045 tons in the previous year.
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