Mauritius tenders for rice, hit by high price

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Tự Hào Gentraco

Tue, 22/05/2012 - 5:49 am.

Mauritius tenders for rice, hit by high price

HAMBURG (Reuters) - Mauritius' state purchasing agency has issued a tender to buy 20,000 tonnes of long grain white rice, European traders said on Wednesday. Traders said they believed a previous sale of 20,000 tonnes of rice to Mauritius in October had been cancelled because of the sharp rise in global rice prices after the Philippines issued tenders to import 1.8 million tonnes of rice. The latest Mauritius tender, as in the October purchase, was for shipment between February 1, 2010 and January 31, 2011. Bidding deadline was December 11 and bids must remain valid until January 20, 2010."The new Mauritius tender seems to illustrate the disruption smaller importing countries are facing because of the sharp rise in rice prices in recent weeks," one trader said."The surge in prices has wrong-footed some trading houses and rice processors and some appear more ready to cancel deals rather than deliver at low prices."Global rice markets shot up after storms in September heavily damaged crops in the Philippines, compelling the country to issue a series of exceptionally large rice import tenders.Manila has issued tenders for a huge 1.8 million tonnes of rice which all close in December following a 150,000 tonne purchase in November.Traders said Mauritius paid $383 c&f for its purchase in October, believed to be from Pakistan. Continued...But benchmark Thai rice prices have risen almost nine percent after the Philippines issued its first rice tender in October.

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in its larger rice tender in November was said by traders to have paid $520 a tonne for 30,000 tonnes of rice from Pakistan.

"I think that Mauritius will find it difficult to get bids for a full year 2010 delivery schedule in the current volatile market," one trader said. "Small countries may find it difficult buying in the stormy rice market."