October 31, 2008

Japan's Ministry of Agriculture has offered to buy 200,000 tonnes of feed barley and 30,000 tonnes of feed wheat in a tender under the simultaneous buy and sell (SBS) system closing on 5 November 2008, said a ministry official on Thursday, 30 October 2008.

All shipments are due from the time the contracts are agreed to 31 January 2009. In its previous feed grain SBS tender, the ministry bought 84,300 tonnes of feed barley at 27,209 yen per tonne (US$276) on average which closed on Wednesday, 22 October 2008.

The ministry originally offered to buy 200,000 tonnes of feed barley and 30,000 tonnes of feed wheat for that tender as well.

Unlike ordinary tenders between the ministry and licensed traders, the SBS system allows users to negotiate directly with trading firms and decide the grain's origin, price and quantity before placing bids to the government together.

$1=98.52 Yen