Bangkok - Thailand's food exports earned the kingdom 380 billion baht (11.3 billion dollars) during the first half of this year, up 28 per cent year-on-year, media reports said Thursday.
The huge jump was attributed primarily to price hikes of agricultural commodities, especially rice, that more than doubled during the January-to-June period, said the Nation newspaper.
Yuthasak Suphasorn, director of the National Food Institute, predicted that earnings from the country's food exports would slow slightly in the second half of 2008, to 367 billion baht (10.9 billion dollars).