RPT-Asia Rice-Thai rates gain as drought hits supply; Vietnam eyes S.America market

(Repeats with no changes)
* India's exports may fall to 7-year low -industry officials
* Bangladesh continues to battle widespread flooding
* Vietnam exports 651,000 tonnes in July, beating forecasts

By Swati Verma
BENGALURU, Aug 8 (Reuters) - Rice export prices in Thailand
rose this week on worries that the country's worst drought in
about a decade could further squeeze supply, while Vietnam
explored potential deals in the south American market.
Thailand's benchmark 5-percent broken
rice RI-THBKN5-P1 prices rose to $406-$425 a tonne on Thursday
from $395-$405 quoted last week.
"Harvesting has started in some areas and the dry conditions
have affected the quality of the rice ... which led to an
increase in domestic rice prices," a Bangkok-based trader said.
Water levels in dams nationwide are far short of the monthly
average, Thailand's meteorological department said. "Many exporters are also trying to buy rice to shore up
their stocks amid concerns over a possible shortage, and this
drove the price up," another rice trader said.
Thai prices were also higher than other Asian hubs, with a
strong baht also contributing to the high rates even as demand
remained flat. Meanwhile, Vietnam's rates for 5% broken rice RI-VNBKN5-P1
remained unchanged from last week at $340-$350 a tonne.
Preliminary data showed 103,000 tonnes of rice is to be
loaded at Ho Chi Minh City ports during Aug. 2-10, with 42%
bound for West Africa, 29% for Iraq and the remainder for the
Philippines and Malaysia.
A delegation from the Vietnam Food Association was in Mexico
earlier this week to seek opportunities to ship Vietnamese rice
to south America as the country was seeking new markets for the
grain, a source with the association said.
Data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
released on Wednesday showed Vietnam exported 651,000 tonnes of
rice in July, beating a government forecast of 600,000 tonnes.
Prices for top-exporter India's 5 percent broken parboiled
variety RI-INBKN5-P1 fell to around $377-$381 per tonne this
week from $381-$384 last week due to a depreciation in the
rupee.
"As the government has procured a large amount of paddy
rice, supplies are limited in the market. Exporters have to pay
higher prices for paddy," said Ashwin Shah, director at Shah
Nanji Nagsi Exports Pvt. Ltd, an exporter based in Nagpur in
central India.
India's rice exports are likely to fall to their lowest in
seven years, industry officials said, on weak demand from Africa
and as shippers absorb the lack of government incentives that
supported previous sales. In neighbouring Bangladesh, floods washed away crops that
would have yielded nearly 400,000 tonnes of rice, according to
estimates from the agriculture ministry.