Rubber Board sees winter supplies to surpass last year’s mark

Thiruvananthapuram: World's 'wintering supply' of natural rubber in the current season is better than that of 2009, according to the outlook review by the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC).

Wintering supplies refer to lean period in rubber plantation when production drops as trees shed their leaves and latex production drops.

February-April is the season, which is internationally accepted as going through a lean `wintering supply”. Though fall in supply in 'wintering season' is different across countries, all prominent plantations usually face short supply of rubber in these months.

“But this year's winter stocks are unlikely to reach the level attained in 2008,” says Djoko Said Damardjati, secretary-general, ANRPC.

The Malaysia-based association represents world's major rubber producers like Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.

Rubber output in the wintering season will surge in world's three major producers—India, Vietnam and Malaysia, ANRPC said in its report.

Overall supply from the association's member countries declined by 5.1% in 2009 to 8.7 million tonne.

By 2009, the total plantation area expanded to 7.13 million hectares from 7.02 million in 2006.

The upward trend in the current season could be seen as a beginning of return to the normal level after the sharp fall in the first quarter of the previous year because of drought.

Quoting Rubber Board, the report says that India witnessed a 6.5% output growth during January 2010. Compared to 92,000 tonne in January 2009, the production in January 2010 was 98,000 tonne, far less than January 2008, production which was estimated to be around 104,000 tonne.

India, one of the world's main rubber producer, has scaled up its targeted output for the current year to 913,000 tonne, up 11.3% from previous year. The country expects average yield per hectare to rise to 1,934 kg, while the area under rubber is projected to increase by 6,000 hectares during the year.

(financialexpress.com)