NFA to issue tender for 250,000 MT rice imports in June

The Philippines, one of the world’s top rice buyers, will issue a tender to import 250,000 tonnes of the grain next month, to boost low stockpiles before the lean harvest season and to offset potential crop damage during the typhoon season. The tender is open to private traders in major exporters Thailand and Vietnam as well as other countries including top supplier India and Pakistan, the National Food Authority (NFA), the state grains buyer, said yesterday. Expectations of fresh rice demand from some of the world’s top importers such as the Philippines and Bangladesh have pushed up prices in Thailand and Vietnam. The NFA will announce the bidding immediately after securing approval from the NFA Council, which may meet this week, NFA spokeswoman Marietta Ablaza told Reuters. The cargoes should arrive later in June or early July, she said. The council will also finalize the import terms for up to 805,000 tonnes of rice that local private traders will bring in under an annual quota scheme, which should ensure supply even during the typhoon season, Ablaza said. (Reuters)