Alibaba plans e-auctions for Thai rubber

Alibaba has told the Rubber Authority of Thailand (RAT) it will provide an auction system for Chinese buyers of Thai rubber in China, anticipating annual sales of at least 200,000 tonnes. 

Nakorn Tangavirapat deputy governor of the RAT, said on Wednesday that officials of Alibaba Group visited the RAT offices to ask it to gather and certify sources of natural rubber supply for its online auction project. 

The e-commerce venture is designed to let buyers in China bid for Thai natural rubber from the convenience of their own homeland, he said.

In response, the RAT said farmers' organisations would be able to supply quality rubber and meet Chinese demand, Mr Nakorn said.

Officials would select a location to install the online auction system and configure software to meet the demands of Chinese buyers, making available a wide range of Thai natural rubber products --including rubber sheets, smoked rubber, block rubber and cup lumps, the RAT's deputy governor said. 

As China was the world's largest rubber purchaser, the project would help stabilise the prices of Thai rubber and raise local rubber prices for the benefits of Thai growers, he said.

The RAT and Alibaba expect the project to produce orders for at least 200,000 tonnes of Thai rubber per year, Mr Nakorn said.