Voluntary Report - public distribution

**Date:** 1/18/2005

**GAIN Report Number:** TH5006

TH5006

**Thailand**

**Grain and Feed**

**Weekly Rice Price Update**

**2005**

**Approved by:**

![](media/image1.wmf)Rodrick McSherry, Agricultural Counselor

U.S. Embassy, Bangkok

**Prepared by:**

Ponnarong Prasertsri, Agricultural Specialist

**Report Highlights:**

Export prices remained under upward pressure due to limited exportable
supplies and stronger Thai Baht.

Includes PSD Changes: No

Includes Trade Matrix: No

Unscheduled Report

Bangkok \[TH1\]

\[TH\]

**Indicative Prices (Week Ending Jan. 17):**

  ------------ -------------- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ -------- ------
  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    456    435    435    425    440      443

  WR 100 B     295            292    295    296    290    294    292    293      289

  PB 5%        288            283    295    297    285    294    282    289      287

  WR 5%        290            287    290    290    285    289    287    288      284

  WR 10%       285            282    285    288    283    286    282    284      280

  WR 15%       278            276    280    285    279    282    277    280      276

  WR 25%       270            265    265    283    261    264    272    269      267

  WR 35%       267            261    \-     280    259    262    267    266      263

  A 1 SUP      229            228    \-     225    226    228    225    228      224

  A 1 SPEC     228            227    \-     222    224    \-     223    226      222

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

**Market Tone**

Export prices for all grades of white rice remained under upward
pressure from limited exportable supplies, fueled by continued
strengthening of the Thai Baht. Despite quiet new order demand, export
price continued to increase, as local millers focused on the government
intervention program, leading to less available supplies to exporters.
As of Jan. 17, 2005, the government bought around 2.6 million tons of
paddy, of which 1.8 million tons were white rice paddy, and 0.8 million
tons were fragrant rice paddy. Currently, exporters who are fulfilling
their outstanding contracts were reportedly suffering from the upward
price pressure from tight supply situation. Also, the Thai Baht
strengthened further to 38.4 Baht/US\$, as compared to 39.05 Baht/US\$
last Monday. However, trade sources reported that price difference
between Thai and Indian parboiled rice was noticeably narrowing to
around US\$ 10/MT, as compared to around US\$ 30/MT in the previous to
week.

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 5        164,956        158,662        7,425         4,818

  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
  ------------ -------------- -------------- ------------- ---------------

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. 10-16 totaled
169,028 tons. Meanwhile, exports during Jan. 1-16, 2005 amounted to
293,181 tons, compared with 193,133 tons in the previous year.

According to the Department of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce,
total rice exports (including fragrant rice) during Jan. 1- Dec. 31,
2004, amounted to 10,132,037 tons, up 35 percent from 7,529,370 tons in
the previous year.

**Weekly Rice Sales**

Private registered rice export sales for the period of Dec. 27-31, 2004,
Jan. 3-7, and Jan 10-14, 2005 are as follows:

  ------------------- ----------------- ----------------- -----------------
  Movement (MT)       Dec. 27-31        Jan. 3-7          Jan. 10-14

  weekly sales        78,251            189,637           133,527

  4 week sum          485,634           \-                \-

  4 week mov. avg.    121,409           \-                \-

  Total weekly sales  8,854,088         189,637           323,164
  ------------------- ----------------- ----------------- -----------------

End of Report.