Voluntary Report - public distribution

**Date:** 1/25/2005

**GAIN Report Number:** TH5008

TH5008

**Thailand**

**Grain and Feed**

**Weekly Rice Price Update**

**2005**

**Approved by:**

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

U.S. Embassy, Bangkok

**Prepared by:**

Ponnarong Prasertsri, Agricultural Specialist

**Report Highlights:**

Export prices continued to increase despite anticipated strong
competition from relatively cheaper Vietnamese rice.

Includes PSD Changes: No

Includes Trade Matrix: No

Unscheduled Report

Bangkok \[TH1\]

\[TH\]

**Indicative Prices (Week Ending Jan. 24):**

  ------------ -------------- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ -------- ------
  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   450            435    450    459    435    440    420    441      440

  WR 100 B     295            294    295    297    297    296    292    295      293

  PB 5%        290            285    295    297    293    296    282    291      289

  WR 5%        290            289    290    292    292    291    287    290      288

  WR 10%       285            284    285    289    290    289    282    286      284

  WR 15%       280            278    280    287    286    285    277    282      280

  WR 25%       270            267    265    284    266    267    272    270      269

  WR 35%       267            263    \-     281    264    265    267    268      266

  A 1 SUP      233            230    \-     236    234    230    232    233      228

  A 1 SPEC     232            229    \-     233    232    \-     230    231      226

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

**Market Tone**

Export prices for white rice were offered even higher despite the
anticipated strong competition from relatively cheaper Vietnamese rice.
Thai rice quotations were reportedly constrained by limited exportable
supply, as the government continued to stockpile rice under the
intervention program which has bought about 2.8 million tons of paddy
(as of Jan. 23, 2005) since Nov. 1, 2004. Of the total intervened paddy,
1.8 million tons were white rice paddy. Also, the current pending
shipment demand for white rice exports to Iraq and Iran put upward
pressure on domestic prices. Trade sources reported that Iran has
recently shifted to Vietnamese rice, as the prices were relatively
cheaper by around US\$ 30/ton for premium white rice. Also, the
continued strengthening Thai Baht dampened Thai rice competitiveness.

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

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

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

  DEC 12       131,152        148,071        7,556         4,936

  DEC 19       112,254        141,983        7,668         5,045

  DEC 26       106,103        128,616        7,775         5,177

  DEC 31       88,510         \-             7,863         5,299

  JAN 2        3,045          \-             3             5

  JAN 9        121,108        \-             124           76

  JAN 16       169,028        \-             293           193

  JAN 23       120,044        \-             413           263
  ------------ -------------- -------------- ------------- ---------------

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. 17-23 totaled
120,044 tons. Meanwhile, exports during Jan. 1-23, 2005 amounted to
413,226 tons, compared with 263,372 tons in the previous year.

According to the Department of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce,
total rice exports (including fragrant rice) during Jan. 1-10, 2005,
amounted to 208,964 tons, up 67 percent from 125,321 tons in the
previous year.

**Weekly Rice Sales**

Private registered rice export sales for the period of Jan. 3-7, Jan.
10-14, and\
Jan. 17-21, 2005 are as follows:

  ------------------- ----------------- ----------------- -----------------
  Movement (MT)       Jan. 3-7          Jan. 10-14        Jan. 17-21

  weekly sales        189,637           133,527           157,190

  4 week sum          \-                \-                \-

  4 week mov. avg.    \-                \-                \-

  Total weekly sales  189,637           323,164           480,354
  ------------------- ----------------- ----------------- -----------------

End of Report.