Iraq buys 150,000 tonnes of rice from India, Pakistan

Thursday, 29 December 2011 01:11 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

HAMBURG (Reuters): Iraq’s state grain board has provisionally purchased about 150,000 tonnes of rice from Pakistan and India in an international tender for at least 30,000 tonnes which closed on Dec. 18 with offers remaining valid until Dec. 22, European traders said on Tuesday.

It was for shipment between late January and February 2012. The award was said to have been split between four trading houses. A range of prices was paid with the lowest said to be $512.63 a tonne c&f liner out.

“The tender awards were provisional and depending on quality tests being accepted,” one trader said. “Indian and Pakistani prices are currently highly-competitive in export markets but there are some quality concerns.”

Iraq bought 120,000 tonnes of rice from India and Pakistan in its last tender reported on Dec. 7, with floods in Thailand restricting supplies from a traditional supply country.

But Iraq has been rejecting rice samples sent by suppliers in the Dec. 7 purchase, traders said. As shipments can only start when samples are accepted, the status of the Dec. 7 purchases is unclear, traders said. Iraq is one of the world’s largest importers of wheat and rice, most of which is used to supply a public food ration programme.