The Philippines bought 34,880 tonnes of rice from China and Thailand, bringing its total imports since the start of the year to about 1.65 million tonnes, a senior government official said on Tuesday.
The Southeast Asian country, one of the world's largest buyers of the grain, imported about 1.85 million tonnes last year. "Unless initial estimates drastically change, these awards are possibly the last imports for the year," Gregory Tan, administrator of the National Food Authority, told Reuters.
Rice is the staple food of the 85 million Filipinos.
The country has been importing rice in recent years because the country's increasing in harvest cannot keep up with the rising population. Of the total rice bought on Tuesday, 24,880 tonnes were Chinese rice and 10,000 tonnes Thai rice for July to September arrival. Tan said the state firm bought the 25-percent Chinese rice variety from trading firm Daiwa International Corp at $289.75 per tonne, including cost and freight.
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