Commerce Minister Krirk-krai Jirapaet said yesterday that the ministry had asked rice-importing countries such as the Philippines, Indonesia and Iran to purchase Thai rice.

"The government is not in a hurry to release its stockpile, even though it is old stock. We are trying to manage things so as to get a good price for the new rice crop, rather than allowing older rice to put pressure on local prices. However, the ministry cannot accept the low price offered by traders," he said, adding that if the attempt to bargain with bidders failed, the ministry would open another round of bidding soon.

The ministry has received offers for 400,000 tonnes of government-stockpiled jasmine and white rice. A smaller number of traders than normal participated in the bidding.

"We believe the ministry can release the rice stockpile due to high demand. However, the ministry will adjust its marketing strategy," Krirk-krai said.

The Kingdom is now forecast to export eight million to nine million tonnes of rice next year, he added. The original target was for 8.5 million tonnes worth US$2.6 billion (Bt93.3 billion).

The ministry has written to major importing countries inviting them to consider bidding for Thai rice or purchasing via other methods such as government-to-government contracts.

"We [the ministry] do not want to become a trader, but we have to focus on the demand in those countries and also ensure high export prices," he said.

Thailand's rice exports last month were 670,000 tonnes worth $253 million. Of the total, jasmine rice accounted for 39 per cent in terms of volume and 46 per cent in terms of value.

The Kingdom should achieve rice exports of 7.5 million tonnes worth $2.52 billion this year.

Export value to date has exceeded the targeted figure by 5 per cent, while the average export price has increased by 10 per cent to $340 per tonne compared with the same period last year.