DUBAI/HAMBURG - Iraq's state grains board said on Thursday it had purchased a total of 60,000 tonnes of rice in an international tender, which closed this week.
The board gave no further details.
Traders said separately some 30,000 tonnes of rice was purchased from the United States at around $655 a tonne c&f free out.
About 30,000 tonnes from Uruguay was purchased at an unknown price. Unconfirmed trade talk was the Uruguay rice was purchased at $568.75 a tonne c&f free out.
Rice from Thailand had been offered at the lowest price in the tender of $499.50 a tonne c&f free out. Iraq does not always accept the lowest offers in its tenders.
Iraq in June banned farmers from planting rice and other water-intensive crops because of drought and shrinking river flows, increasing its import requirement.
In its last reported rice tender on May 11, Iraq purchased around 60,000 tonnes to be sourced from Argentina and Paraguay.
Iraq on Thursday also purchased a total 300,000 tonnes of wheat from the United States in directly negotiated deals without international tenders being issued.
(Reporting by Maha El Dahan and Michael Hogan, additional reporting by Moayad Kenany in Baghdad, editing by David Evans) ((michael.j.hogan@thomsonreuters.com; +49 40 419 03 4275; Reuters Messaging: michael.hogan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
