Bangkok, Aug 17 - Thailand, Asia's biggest sugar exporter, could produce 7.6 million tonnes of sugar in its 2009/10 crop and aimed to export a record 5.7 million tonnes in 2010, a senior official said.
"We expect a better yield from our 2009/10 cane crop, which means we would have plenty left to export in the 2010 calendar year," Prasert Tapaneeyangkul, secretary general of the Office of Cane and Sugar Board, told Reuters.
The 2009/10 crushing season is expected to start in November, when the cane is harvested, and run through April 2010.
In the 2008/09 crop Thailand produced 7.14 million tonnes of sugar, Prasert said, speaking before a big Asian sugar conference in Bangkok.
He expected Thailand to export as much as 5.7 million tonnes in 2010, the highest ever, thanks to the big supply surplus.
Thailand exported 4.9 million tonnes in 2008 and aims to sell around 5 million tonnes this year, which would set a record. It has exported 2.5 million tonnes of sugar so far this year.
"We are confident that we have ample supply for consumption and there's no reason to build up stocks to be carried over," Prasert said.
Thailand generally uses about 1.9 million tonnes of sugar for domestic consumption each year and the rest is exported, he said.
The key New York raw sugar contract for October delivery hit a 28-year high last week above 23 cents per lb on buying sparked by the prospect of large imports by India, the world's biggest sugar consumer.
Prasert said he expected world prices to remain firm in 2010 as supply was forecast to fall short of demand.
He forecast that New York raw sugar futures would rise further in 2009, with 20 cents per lb seen as a key support level.
"I don't believe that New York prices would slip below 20 cents per lb as demand remains strong," Prasert said.
Most analysts expect prices to climb to 23 to 25 U.S. cents per lb.
The International Sugar Organisation (ISO) has officially forecast India would import 5 million tonnes of sugar in 2009/10, but Indian industry official expect imports of just 3-4 million tonnes and ISO Executive Director Peter Baron indicated the same range to Reuters on Monday.
Prasert said he expected India to buy more sugar from Thailand next year due to its competitive logistic costs, compared to the cost of importing Brazilian sugar.