Prices of rubber rises 6% to Rs 134 a kg due to rain and floods in Kerala

Prices of rubber rose nearly six per cent to Rs 134 a kg on Thursday from Rs 127 as on July 31 due to rain and floods in Kerala, which caters to 85 per cent of the domestic demand. Tyre makers, the largest consumers of natural rubber, are worried more about availability than price. They expect a gap of over a half a million tonnes during the ongoing fiscal.

Rubber has seen around 40 per cent crop loss, the Kerala Planters Association (KPA) estimates, which means the targeted output of 600,000 metric tonnes (MT) for 2018-2019 will not be possible. Production has remained below 45,000 tonnes from April-June, while in August there was virtually no production. Arrivals in the market are practically nil or negligible, said Rajiv Budhraja, director general, Automotive Tyre Manufacturers’ Association. He said more than 40 per cent of the April-June demand was met through imports.