China has agreed to buy 200,000 mt/year of natural rubber from Thailand starting this year "on a government-to-government basis," the Thai government said Sunday.
The Chinese government has pledged to buy the rubber "under a special deal between the governments of the two countries starting this year with no specific time frame," the Thai government said on its website.
The announcement of the agreement came after a four-day visit to Thailand by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang that ended Sunday.
Thailand said China will buy the rubber and 1 million mt of rice "for an indefinite period."
China imported 2.18 million mt of natural rubber in 2012, of which 1.5 million mt came from Thailand and was imported mostly by privately-owned trading houses and end users.
Traders in mid-September said the Chinese government was in talks to buy up to 200,000 mt of natural rubber for state stockpiles.
