Voluntary Report - public distribution

**Date:** 2/7/2006

**GAIN Report Number:** TH6016

TH6016

**Thailand**

**Grain and Feed**

**Weekly Rice Price Update**

**2006**

**Approved by:**

![](media/image1.wmf)Russ Nicely, Agricultural Attache

U.S. Embassy, Bangkok

**Prepared by:**

Ponnarong Prasertsri, Agricultural Specialist

**Report Highlights:**

Export prices remained high, fueled by government intervention stock
releases.

Includes PSD Changes: No

Includes Trade Matrix: No

Unscheduled Report

Bangkok \[TH1\]

\[TH\]

**Indicative Prices (Week Ending Feb. 6):**

  ------------ -------------- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ -------- -------
  Thailand:                                                                      
  Export (FOB)                                                                   
  Prices for                                                                     
  various                                                                        
  grades of                                                                      
  rice                                                                           
  (USD/M.T.)                                                                     

               Exporter                                                 Period   
               Observations                                             Avg.     

               #1             #2     #3     #4     #5     #6     #7     CUR.     PRV.

  F WR 100 B   430            435    435    446    \-     412    410    428      \-

  WR 100 B     307            313    305    306    \-     306    300    306      \-

  PB 5%        295            305    300    297    \-     293    290    297      \-

  WR 5%        302            308    300    300    \-     298    295    301      \-

  WR 10%       295            300    295    297    \-     296    290    296      \-

  WR 15%       285            297    290    295    \-     284    285    289      \-

  WR 25%       267            280    275    281    \-     264    280    275      \-

  WR 35%       265            \-     \-     278    \-     262    275    270      \-

  A 1 SUP      216            222    216    218    \-     211    212    216      \-

  A 1 SPEC     214            220    214    216    \-     \-     210    215      \-

  Source:                                                                        
  Average                                                                        
  actual                                                                         
  prices                                                                         
  received                                                                       
  from                                                                           
  exporters                                                                      
  ------------ -------------- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ -------- -------

**Market Tone**

![](media/image2.wmf){width="4.75in" height="2.375in"}Export prices
remained high, up further from the week before the Chinese New Year
Holiday, in line with strong domestic prices, resulting from the recent
intervention stock release. The Government sold 623,713 tons of 5% grade
white rice out of the proposed tender of around 710,000 tons of MY
2004/05 crop last week (more details in TH6014).\
The result of this tender put upward pressure on domestic prices, as
President Agri Trading got around 466,630 tons, accounting for about 75
percent of total stock release (please see the table below). This
company used to buy all the Government's old stock (prior MY 2004/05
crops) in mid 2004 when new price trend began.

The current market remained quiet for white rice, as foreign buyers,
particularly in the African market, were reportedly sourcing Vietnamese
rice, except for Iraqi market to which Thai exporters are more
dependable for the required quality and the delivery. Also, the parboil
rice and broken white rice markets were quiet in response to the current
slowdown in the import demand of African countries. Trade sources
expected the return of parboil rice demand in the next couple of months
with strong competition from Indian rice.

The following are the reported rice exports (as is basis)**:**

  ------------ -------------- -------------- ------------- ---------------
  WEEK ENDING  QUANTITY       4-WK AVG       YEAR TO DATE  YEAR AGO

               (MT)           (MT)           (TMT)         (TMT)

  DEC 18       97,813         85,488         4,858         7,665

  DEC 25       80,754         87,620         4,939         7,772

  DEC 31       63,125         80,973         5,002         7,863

  JAN 8        69,443         \-             69            119

  JAN 15       105,420        \-             175           275

  JAN 22       82,797         \-             258           408

  JAN 29       106,161        90,955         364           545

  FEB 5        66,774         90,288         431           681
  ------------ -------------- -------------- ------------- ---------------

Note on data: Export figures since March 22, 2002, do not include
fragrant rice. The authority to report fragrant rice exports was moved
from the Thai Board of Trade to the Ministry of Commerce's Office of
Commodity Standards, which does not release official fragrant rice
export data. FAS/BKK will report only official export numbers from the
Board of Trade for non-fragrant and from the Office of Commodity
Standards for fragrant rice when available, but the reader should bear
in mind the difference between the data.

Unofficial exports (excluding fragrant rice) for Jan. 30 -- Feb. 5
totaled 66,774 tons, down 39,387 tons from the previous week's total,
and down 23,514 tons from the four-week moving average of 90,288 tons.
Exports during Jan. 1 -- Feb. 5, 2006 totaled 430,594 tons, as compared
with 681,127 tons in the previous year.

According to the Department of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce,
total rice exports (including fragrant rice) during Jan. 1 -- 31, 2006,
amounted to 558,415 tons, down 27 percent from 763,454 tons in the
previous year.

**Weekly Rice Sales**

Private registered rice export sales for the period of Jan. 16-20, Jan.
23-27, and\
Jan. 30 -- Feb. 3, 2006 are as follows:

  ------------------- ----------------- ----------------- -----------------
  Movement (MT)       Jan. 16-20        Jan. 23-27        Jan. 30 -- Feb. 3

  weekly sales        100,915           151,834           55,151

  4 week sum          \-                465,562           431,942

  4 week mov. avg.    \-                116,391           107,986

  Total weekly sales  313,728           465,562           520,713
  ------------------- ----------------- ----------------- -----------------

End of Report.