Thailand to Seek Clarification on U.S. Rice Prices

Thailand will this week seek clarification from the U.S. About its decision to freeze rice export prices from January to early April, Commerce Minister Montri Pongpanich said.

Montri told reporters he will seek a meeting with U.S. Ambassador William Brown to determine why the U.S. Failed to set its weekly rice prices in accordance with rising world prices during the period.

He said the U.S. Has followed a policy of weakening world rice prices by announcing highly subsidised export prices lower than those quoted by Thai traders.

Thai officials said weekly rice prices as announced by the U.S. Agriculture Department were unchanged for 11 weeks up to April 8.

Thailand, a major rice exporter, has criticised the U.S. Farm Act which provides heavy subsidies to U.S. Exporters enabling them to compete with Thai exporters.

Thai officials said average export prices of Thai rice fell 19 pct last year and another 5.8 pct during the first quarter this year.

The Board of Trade said Thailand exported 1.23 mln tonnes in January/March, down from 1.29 mln a year ago.

It said the export decline was partly due to the reluctance of Thai traders to accept all foreign orders as world prices did not rise in line with firming domestic prices.

The board said, however, that Thailand may export more rice later this year, especially to Africa, the Middle East and Asia, due to lower production in many drought affected African countries and to expected small exportable surpluses in Burma and Pakistan.

It said Thai rice exports to nine major African buyers rose to 351,889 tonnes during the first quarter from 93,038 a year earlier.