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| Wednesday, 21 January 2004 |
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More buoyancy in rubber industry - Rubber Traders' Assn Chairman By Steve A. Morrell "Sri Lanka's rubber industry will be well placed throughout 2004 , at the very least, if not beyond, " said Amanda Weerasinghe Chairman Rubber Traders' Association, in an interview with the Daily News yesterday. Buoyancy in the market will continue and stabilise further promising a profitable future for the rubber industry. The plantation sector which experienced consistent losses in this crop could now justify their development plans. More within context was that plantations could now revert to basic cultural practices which were neglected during the lean times, he said. The big car manufacturers in the US, Europe, and Japan namely BMW, Audi, Toyota, Nissan and the bigger assembly lines in Northern Europe, have all experienced enhanced production and sales. The resultant demand for rubber coupled with bad weather experienced in Thailand have helped boost Sri Lanka's rubber industry. This trend will continue not merely because of improved trade conditions in the short term, but the more significant aspect will be the entry of Lankaprene into the market by 2005. Lankaprene, a new product is now being tested in the US, and subject to demands of basic norms and standards maintained the future looks good for rubber. The Ministry of Plantation Industries recently released tracts of land for new rubber plantations in the Moneragala district, which is reported to be ideally suited for rubber because of more days of production per year, than the traditional rubber growing districts. Reverting to the market for the week, he said the volume will come down because of early wintering experienced in the rubber districts. This will naturally depress crop. Nevertheless, this will be only a temporary phenomenon and the industry should normalise quite quickly. Sixty percent of rubber produced is consumed locally. This fact too augurs well for the Industry. |
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