Rubber output in country rises by 8 per cent

Kochi: Natural rubber output in the country rose by 8 per cent to 245,000 tonne in Apr-Aug 2016 compared with 227,000 tonne in the same period a year ago, according to provisional estimates released by Rubber Board on Friday. The demand for natural rubber also rose 5.7 per cent to 433,090 tonne as against 409,660 tonne in the period under review. The import of natural rubber, meanwhile, moved up slightly to 196,128 tonne from 192,174 tonne.

The increase in the import of the natural rubber is a matter of concern despite the domestic production showing an uptrend, say persons connected with rubber farming. If the increase in imports persist the price of the commodity is likely to witness further downtrend, they said. According to the Rubber Board data, the carry forward stock in the country is 222,000 tonne as on August 16, 2016. Rubber price is currently hovering around Rs 118 rupees per kg for the RSS-4 grade in Kottayam, down 12 rupees from Rs 130 prevailed a month ago.