Thousands of tonnes of 'illegal' rice pile up at China border       Thousands of tonnes of rice are piling up at border checkpoints between Vietnam and China in northern Lao Cai Province as traders on both sides try to get around export regulations to avoid tax and quota restrictions. Lam Anh Tuan, the director of Thinh Phat Food Co, said Chinese buyers do not want to pay tax on official exports and want to circumvent the Chinese government's lower rice import quotas from Vietnam. In April, China closed several border crossings with Vietnam to stop illegal rice imports. Tran Thanh Hai, from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said China was tightening restrictions on cross-border trade to fight smuggling, and the rice trade was severely affected. Authorities of Lao Cai are trying to work with Chinese authorities to deal with the problem and clear the backlog. Some border crossings have re-opened, but seized rice stocks remain high. Lao Cai authorities urged the Ministry of Industry and Trade to sign a border trade pact with Chinese Ministry of Commerce to alleviate the problem.         ld, dtinews.vn