Creating a common trading platform may be a way to strengthen rubber prices, according to Sheela Thomas, Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries Assembly (ANRPC) Secretary-General.
ANRPC’s ministerial level meeting was held at Kuala Lumpur and the deliberations based on the decisions of the Ministerial Assembly are being continued, she said.
This will be one of the important tasks of ANRPC annual meetings scheduled at Siem Reap in Cambodia from October 19 to 23, she said while speaking at the India Rubber Summit & Dinner 2015 organised by Asian Business Media.
During his inaugural address, A Jayathilak, Chairman of the Rubber Board, said that there were several factors that determine the future of the rubber sector. Such factors are shifting of rubber cultivation to non-traditional regions, climate change, impact of shale gas developments, and others.
In a panel discussion on “NR Prices: The Emerging Scenario”, the industry experts pointed out that they were not expecting major increases in rubber prices in the next year.
But in spite of the prevailing downtrend in prices, the experts were confident that the demand is set to go up in tandem with global economic recovery.
Speakers also called upon the rubber farmers not to abandon tapping, but reduce the cost of production by limiting tapping to 60 days a year which is enough to get good yield.