Colombo, Feb 7 (TIWN) Sri Lanka's Ministry of Trade said on Monday it has decided to import 100,000 tonnes of white rice from Myanmar to control the rising price of rice in local markets.

The Ministry said in a statement it planned to import the rice at $445 per tonne through the Sri Lanka State Trading (General) Corporation, reports Xinhua news agency.  It plans to import 20,000 tonnes of rice at a time and release it to the market gradually.  The Ministry of Trade said it has requested the Central Bank to issue the required foreign exchange for the import of the rice.  Imports of rice in Sri Lanka are usually limited to small quantities, especially rice such as Basmati, officials said.