The Philippine government agreed on Tuesday to buy 600,000 metric tons of rice from Vietnam through a government-to-government deal, bringing to 2.3 million metric tons its total rice imports for 2008.
The Philippines, the world’s biggest rice importer, paid an average of $940 a ton, including freight, for the latest purchase. The rice is expected to be delivered in July, August and September.
“This is sufficient for the 2008 requirement,” Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said in a telephone interview.
In a statement, Yap said the purchase was made in keeping with government plans to go back to the market to further augment its “buffer stocks when the price and other conditions are suitable for us.”
“In this instance, we have been able to secure a good deal with Vietnam and saw this as a good opportunity to expand our stockpile, especially in light of the recent uptick in global rice prices,” he said.
Prices decline
Benchmark Thai rice prices fell to about $795 per ton FOB on Wednesday, continuing a decline from a peak of about $1,080 on April 24 on the back of the Philippine flurry of purchases and export curbs by producing nations.
The trade restrictions, along with higher costs of oil and farm inputs, rising global demand, drought, biofuel production and price speculation, pushed up grain prices to record highs.
The leap in the price of rice, a staple for half the world’s population, fed into a global food crisis that triggered protests around the world and threatened hunger for nearly 1 billion people.
In the Philippines, the rise in the cost of regular milled rice to more than P30 a kilo in April, from about P25-P27 a kilo in March, drove people to queue for state-subsidized rice sold at only P18.25 a kilo.
So far, the Philippines has spent around $1.54 billion importing its rice requirements, mainly from Vietnam and Thailand, for the year.
At its last successful rice tender in April, the Philippines paid an average of $1,136 a ton, up 60 percent from a tender in March.
The Philippines scrapped a tender for 675,000 tons of rice in May, saying it preferred to wait for international prices of the grain to decline as more supply reaches the market.
Market very quiet
more info--->>>RP to buy 600,000 tons of Vietnam rice - INQUIRER.net, Philippine News for Filipinos
The Philippines, the world’s biggest rice importer, paid an average of $940 a ton, including freight, for the latest purchase. The rice is expected to be delivered in July, August and September.
“This is sufficient for the 2008 requirement,” Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said in a telephone interview.
In a statement, Yap said the purchase was made in keeping with government plans to go back to the market to further augment its “buffer stocks when the price and other conditions are suitable for us.”
“In this instance, we have been able to secure a good deal with Vietnam and saw this as a good opportunity to expand our stockpile, especially in light of the recent uptick in global rice prices,” he said.
Prices decline
Benchmark Thai rice prices fell to about $795 per ton FOB on Wednesday, continuing a decline from a peak of about $1,080 on April 24 on the back of the Philippine flurry of purchases and export curbs by producing nations.
The trade restrictions, along with higher costs of oil and farm inputs, rising global demand, drought, biofuel production and price speculation, pushed up grain prices to record highs.
The leap in the price of rice, a staple for half the world’s population, fed into a global food crisis that triggered protests around the world and threatened hunger for nearly 1 billion people.
In the Philippines, the rise in the cost of regular milled rice to more than P30 a kilo in April, from about P25-P27 a kilo in March, drove people to queue for state-subsidized rice sold at only P18.25 a kilo.
So far, the Philippines has spent around $1.54 billion importing its rice requirements, mainly from Vietnam and Thailand, for the year.
At its last successful rice tender in April, the Philippines paid an average of $1,136 a ton, up 60 percent from a tender in March.
The Philippines scrapped a tender for 675,000 tons of rice in May, saying it preferred to wait for international prices of the grain to decline as more supply reaches the market.
Market very quiet
more info--->>>RP to buy 600,000 tons of Vietnam rice - INQUIRER.net, Philippine News for Filipinos
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