China’s Qingdao Doublestar Co. has signed an agreement with South Korean tyre maker Kumho Tire creditors to buy a 42% stake worth US$830 million. With this deal, Doublestar could become China’s largest tyre maker and in the running as the top…
Category: Industry News
Rubber export option brings hope to Indian growers despite low local prices
Local rubber growers and tappers in India are optimistic this tapping season despite falling domestic prices as production is forecasted to increase and export options open up. “The season for tapping latex was to wind up in February. But because…
ChemSpec to distribute JHSi’s silane coupling agents in North America
ChemSpec, a chemicals company based in Ohio in the US, has signed an agreement with the largest silane coupling agent manufacturer in China, Jingzhou Jianghan Fine Chemical Co., Ltd. (JHSi), to be the exclusive distributor of the latter’s more than…
Slow, steady gain for Asian rubber in 2017
The Asian rubber industry is no stranger to fluctuations in commodity prices and upshot of market mechanisms. This year has jump started with improved rubber prices, compared to earlier quarters of last year, supported by increasing crude oil prices and healthy domestic…
US NRL develops lighter transparent thermoplastic elastomer armor
A lighter and easily repairable transparent thermoplastic elastomer has been developed and patented by research chemists at the US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). The new features will allow bullet-resistant glass to have reduced weight while still maintaining superior ballistic properties.…
Goodyear unveils Eagle-360 spherical concept tyre for autonomous driving
American multinational tyre manufacturing company Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has unveiled its futuristic spherical concept tyre, Eagle-360, designed for autonomous driving. The spherical, 3-D printed tyre highlights Goodyear’s vision for the future and presents an inspiring solution for the…
Antimicrobial silicone invented by Lithuanian researchers
A PhD student at the Kaunas University of Technology (KTU)in Lithuania, with the help of her supervisor, has successfully invented an antimicrobial silicone which, they believe, will be extremely useful both for household and medical purposes. Aiste Lisauskaite, a student…
ANRPC forecasts NR output to surpass demand by 3 mn tonnes in 2017
The Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) has forecasted natural rubber (NR) production in 2017 to surpass demand by 3 million tonnes. In 2016, natural rubber output surpassed demand by 2.7 million tonnes. As per the report released by…
ATMA raises concern over falling bus, truck radial tyre production in India
The Automotive Tyre Manufacturers’ Association (ATMA) in India is raising concern over the continued decrease in production of truck & bus radial (TBR) tyres in the country due to slowing economy and rising dumping of Chinese radials. From more than…
Wacker invests EUR7 mn to expand silicone production in Brazil
Global chemicals company Wacker Chemie AG is investing a total of EUR7 million to increase silicone production at its Jandira site near São Paulo, Brazil. The company is currently building a multi-purpose facility to manufacture antifoam compounds and functional silicone…