The Philippines will purchase 500,000 tonnes of 25 percent broken rice priced at US$380 per tonne from Vietnam’s largest rice exporter Vinafood 2 and a contract is expected to be signed in early January 2009.The information was revealed by the Philippine Secretary of Agriculture, Arthur C. Yap, on December 19, the Manila-based Business World newspaper reported.

The Philippine Daily The Inquirer, also based in Manila, said that the Philippine Department of Agriculture wants to import low-price rice from Vietnam instead of rice from Thailand, which is priced at US$520 per tonne on average.

The Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) recently inked a cooperation agreement with Vinafood 2, under which BIDV will provide VND4,000 billion in credit for Vinafood 2 to buy rice and farm produce from farmers.