March 1, 2011

Thai soyoil producers seek US$0.62 price hike per litre

Thailand's soyoil producers want to raise the price by THB19 (US$0.62) for a one-litre bottle, a 41.3% rise from the price cap of THB46 (US$1.50), due to rising raw material costs.

Soy is currently trading at about US$1,500 per tonne, compared with an average of US$900 in the second half of last year, said Vichit Vitayatanagorn, president of the Soybean and Rice Bran Oil Processors Association.

Thailand produces only 180,000 tonnes of soy a year but demand is about two million tonnes. Last year the country imported 1.7 million tonnes of soy, mostly from the US and Latin America.

Local demand for soy cooking oil has also been rising locally because palm oil has been in short supply the past two months.

Fertiliser and ready-to-drink milk also requested price hikes. However, Commerce Minister Porntiva Nakasai said none of these products had increases approved yet.

Egg producers asked the government to drop eggs from its price-control list and allow the market to determine prices.

Mongkol Pipatsattayanuwong, president of the Association of Hen-Egg Farmers, Traders and Exporters, said assorted sizes of eggs were sold at THB2.70-2.80 (US$0.088-$0.091) apiece, despite production costs rising to THB2.60 (US$0.85).

"The government should realise the cost to produce an egg today is not THB2.10 (US$0.069) or THB2.20 (US$0.072) because of rising feed costs stemming from high corn and soybean meal prices," he said.