Saudi Arabia and UAE seek more Thai rice

Dubai: Saudi Arabia, one of the world's top rice buyers, and the UAE are planning to secure more Thai rice imports this year to meet domestic demand, traders said yesterday.

India, the world's second-biggest rice exporter in 2007 and a main supplier to the Gulf region, banned all non-basmati rice shipments in March.

But earlier this month, India's Food Secretary T. Nand Kumar said that India would soon consider selling limited volumes to its neighbours or countries with which India had a "strategic interest".

"Most importers in Saudi Arabia and the UAE are planning to secure more rice supplies from Thailand instead of waiting for India to lift its export ban," a Gulf food importer said.

"The prices are skyrocketing, but we are very keen on securing enough supplies from Thailand, which is the most suitable option for the time being," he said.

Last year, Saudi Arabia imported 960,000 tonnes of rice, making it the world's sixth biggest rice importer, according to US Department of Agriculture data.

Around 70 percent of the kingdom's rice imports were basmati rice, while Thai rice accounted for 10 per cent, traders said.

In the UAE, which buys about 750,000 tonnes of rice mainly from India, Pakistan and Egypt, Thai rice imports stand at around 60,000 tonnes a year.

Impact: Storm may lift prices

Cyclone damage to Myanmar's rice crop could stir up prices, which have shown signs of easing after forecasts of a record global crop calmed nervous markets.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said cyclone Nargis damaged 20 per cent of rice paddy in Myanmar's five disaster areas, compared with seven per cent losses estimated by the the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

"About 20 per cent of the rice fields have been damaged," FAO regional chief He Changchui said, adding farmers had about 50 days to plant their next rice crop. "There is not much time. The planting season has started already. We need to have the funds and resources to bring the farmers back."