Boonsong pins rice deal woes on baht

Boonsong pins rice deal woes on baht

Commerce Minister Boonsong Teriyapirom has blamed the soaring baht for hampering government-to-government (G-to-G) rice export deals.

Mr Boonsong said on Tuesday the Yingluck administration is negotiating with the governments of China, South Korea and African nations to sell rice to them, but baht strength has affected proceedings.

Rising Thai rice prices have hindered the government's efforts to reduce stockpiles, he said, adding that deals will be even harder to negotiate if the baht keeps appreciating.

Mr Boonsong said if the government decides to cut rice prices to attract buyers, then it will only make a bigger loss.

The G-to-G rice export target is set at 6-7 million tonnes this year, he said, adding that 7.3 million tonnes were sold under such deals last year.

"If the loss [from rice sales] increases, the government may have to allocate a portion of the new budget to compensate for it," Mr Boonsong said.

According to the minister, the Department of Foreign Trade has been told to auction 500,000 tonnes of rice under the government's pledging scheme. Domestic rice buyers will be invited to take part.

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