The Philippines' state grain agency said on Friday it may seek bids this month from small farmers' groups for the rights to import up to 60,000 tonnes of rice, part of an approved volume for private sector importers. The National Food Authority (NFA) would publish an invitation to bid for import rights for 60,000 tonnes rice early next week, and the tender may be in the last week of March, said Gilbert Lauengco, special assistant to the NFA administrator.
The volume is part of the 660,000 tonnes rice the government has allowed the private sector to bring in this year. The separate volume is set aside for farmers' co-operatives to ensure they get an import allocation. The state agency has already set a March 23 tender for private traders for the right to import 600,000 tonnes rice.
Under the scheme, private importers are allowed tariff-free rice purchases in exchange for paying a service fee to the NFA. A minimum service fee of 100 pesos per 50-kilogram bag of rice has been set for the 600,000 tonnes volume. The Philippines was the world's biggest buyer of rice in recent years, including record purchases of 2.45 million tonnes in 2010, but is looking to sharply cut imports this year to 860,000 tonnes. It also wants the private sector to bring in bulk of its rice import needs this year to cut on costs.
The NFA is in talks to buy 200,000 tonnes of rice from Vietnam under an existing government-to-government deal. Angelito Banayo, administrator of the NFA, said Manila has set aside a budget of $550 per tonne, cost and freight, for the imports, below the average price of $630 a tonne for imports during the previous government.
"But that does not mean we will buy at that price," Banayo said. "I expect NFA can buy the 200,000 tonnes lower than $550." The Vietnam Food Association said on Thursday it would cut the floor price of its 25-percent broken grain, often bought by the Philippines, by 4.2 percent to $460 per tonne.
The NFA has said it wants all shipments to arrive on or before June 30 this year, or before the lean season starts in July. It has approval for imports of up to 1.3 million tonnes in 2011, but said it may not need to bring in the entire volume with huge stockpiles and expectations of good harvest this year.