Thailand to sell its entire rice stockpile

Thailand's premier said Tuesday the country would sell all of its 2.1 million tonnes of stockpiled rice at a cut price to relieve shortages and try to curb soaring domestic prices of the staple grain.
Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej said his cabinet on Tuesday approved the plan to gradually sell off the rice stockpile in five-kilogramme (11-pound) bags for 170 baht (about five dollars) each.
A bag of Jasmine rice currently costs more than 200 baht.
"This is aimed at relieving the current rice situation," Samak said. "Money from the sales will be spent on purchasing new rice to replace the stockpiles."
World rice prices have soared this year, a trend blamed on higher energy and fertiliser costs, greater global demand, droughts, the loss of rice farmland to biofuel plantations, and price speculation.