BANGKOK, 2 Mar 2015, The Ministry of Industry and related agencies are keeping an eye on the global sugar price, as fear of a massive price drop grows.
The watch was triggered by a sugar price decrease of 13.79 cents per pound, as a result of the depreciation of the Brazilian Real currency which has negatively affected the sugar market price.
Industry Ministry officials fear that if Brazil’s average sugar price over a year, is lower than 18 cents per pound, then Thailand’s Sugarcane and Sugar Fund would take a direct hit in stabilizing the prices of sugarcane and sugar in this country during the 2014/2015 season.
The Government earlier urged rice farmers and rubber planters to switch to sugarcane and other crops while waiting for prices of those two important products to pick up. The move has significantly increased the number of sugarcane planters nationwide.
The officials stated it would be difficult to maintain the price of sugar given the aforementioned circumstances and the current weak state of the fund.
