Iran has showed an interest in buying more rice from Thailand as the Prayut government seeks to unload grain from the country's huge stockpile.


Iranian President Hassan Rouhani showed an intention to import rice in talks with Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Sunday, deputy government spokesman Werachon Sukondhapatipak said.

The meeting did not go into details of a new purchase, but Gen Prayut asked for details of progress on a previous rice agreement made between the two countries, Lt Gen Werachon added.

Thailand signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with Iran early this year to sell 300,000 tonnes of rice worth 4.3 billion baht to the Middle East country.

As Thailand plans to sell more rice from stocks, Iran is targeted as a potential customer.

Thailand shipped 4.8 million tonnes in the first half of this year, up 9.3% from the same period a year ago.

The Iranian president is in Bangkok for an official visit and the Asia Cooperation Dialogue�(ACD) Summit to be held at the Foreign Ministry on Monday.

In a meeting with Asian business leaders earlier on Sunday, Gen Prayut urging closer cooperation between the public and private sectors to bolster Asian growth. He singled out infrastructure investment as a key to driving the continent.

The ACD was created by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2002. It started with 18 members and has grown�to 34.

By Bangkok Post