Thailand: Strong baht may crimp rice exports

Despite big increases in both rice prices and the trading volume in global markets, Thai exporters may not benefit from the flourishing exports due to the firmer baht. Sumeth Laomoraphorn, president of CP Intertrade, said Thailand should enjoy high export prices as the world's biggest rice-exporting country but the baht's appreciation would eat into that.

The baht is stronger than other currencies in the region. In particular, the Vietnamese dong is stable against the US dollar, which will reduce Thai export competitiveness. Vietnam is the world's second biggest rice-exporter. The export price per tonne for Thai rice is US$30 to $40 higher than for Vietnamese rice.