The Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) is recently released its Natural Rubber Trends & Statistics, August 2020.

The first seven months of 2020 has witnessed an 8.9% year-over-year (y/y) fall in the world production and a 14.0% y/y fall in world consumption of natural rubber. Based on preliminary estimates available up to July 2020 from individual countries, and anticipated figures for the rest of the year, the world production in the year 2020 is anticipated at 13.149 million tons, down 4.9% from the previous year. This is slightly lower than the outlook for 2020 reported in July 2020 which was 13.195 million tons, down 4.5% from the previous year. The outlook for world consumption in 2020 is scaled down to 12.544 million tons or down 8.9 % from the previous year. The consumption outlook for 2020 as reported in July 2020 was 12.754 million tons, down 7.3% from the previous year.

Natural rubber market was dynamic during August 2020. The prices both in the physical and futures markets gained considerably during the month. The RSS3 market at Bangkok stole the show by posting a 24.1% rise during the month compared to a 14.3% rise in STR20 at Bangkok, 7.9% rise in SMR20 at Kuala Lumpur, 4.0% rise in NR latex at Kuala Lumpur, and a 3.7% rise in RSS4 at Kottayam.

ANRPC pinpoints that a major highlight of this issue is logical analysis of the developments in the market during August by identifying the key drivers, especially the drivers that led RSS prices at Bangkok to a peak in the second half of the month. This issue also examines the factors that keep NR latex market at a low key even at a time when the rubber glove manufacturing industry exploded. Such a stark situation underscores the importance of an appropriate policy intervention to enable the latex industry to gain from the large-scale capacity addition taking place in glove manufacturing across the world.

The short-term outlook provided through this issue of the publication enables the users to get a closer picture of the emerging developments in the market along with the potential risk factors. The developments in the market in the short and medium term heavily depends on the global economic recovery and a revival of the automobile industry and the transport sector. The realization of these depends on how early an effective vaccine against coronavirus is developed and its mass production is achieved.

Article by ANRPC.