The high price of Thai rice has resulted in the Kingdom losing about 50 per cent of its export customers as countries switch to importing more rice from India and Vietnam, which offer more attractive prices.

The government's huge rice stockpile of an estimated of 12 million tonnes has also led to more difficulties for exporters.

The government should make its priority both the value and volume of rice exports in order to maintain the country's rice trading, rather than continuing its populist policy through high-subsidy prices, a seminar on "The Future of Thai Rice in the World Market" heard yesterday.

Panellists said exporters should not necessarily focus solely on selling rice, but should consider becoming broader trading companies if they were going to survive in business.

They agreed that the government's high-subsidy price policy was undermining the country's export competitiveness vis-a-vis its major rivals, India and Vietnam, as well as in relation to emerging rice exporters such as Myanmar and Cambodia.

They added that the upcoming regional single market under the Asean Economic Community would, however, create business opportunities for companies to focus more on rice trading by establishing businesses in neighbouring countries to facilitate exports.

Doing so would create new sources of supply at a lower cost and strengthen their exports in the long run, panellists said.

The Kingdom's rice export volume is now predicted to reach only 6.5 million tonnes this year, downgrading the country to the world's third-biggest exporter, behind India at 10 million tonnes and Vietnam at 7.2 million tonnes.

Normally, Thai export volume comes in at 8 million to 9 million tonnes per year, making it the world's biggest exporting nation for several decades.

Kiattisak Kanlayasirivat, president of Novel Agritrade (Thailand), told the seminar that the number of firms importing Thai rice had dropped by more than 50 per cent, with importers deciding to purchase more rice from India and Vietnam because of their lower prices.

"The government thought that high local prices would also encourage high exports, but prices should be in line with volume," he said.

Vallop Pitchpongsa, managing director of Top Organic Products and Supplies, said the government's huge rice stockpile would affect the country's exports next year.

Source: The Nation