The country's synthetic rubber consumption has risen by 13 per cent to 35,865 tonnes in December 2010, outstripping the domestic supply of 9,463 tonnes in the same period, according to the Rubber Board.
Synthetic rubber production and demand stood at 8,912 tonnes and 35,865 tonnes, respectively, in the same period previous year, the Board's data showed.
Synthetic rubber is mostly used in the manufacturing of tyres in the country. The industry consumed 26,278 tonnes of the produce in December 2010 alone, it said.
According to the Rubber Board, the demand for synthetic rubber also jumped significantly by 23.37 per cent to 3,06,620 tonnes till December 2010 of this fiscal, as against 2,48,520 tonnes in the year-ago period.
Meanwhile, overall production of synthetic rubber has increased only by three per cent to 81,604 tonnes from 79,263 tonnes in the review period, it said.
India, the world's second biggest consumer of natural rubber, imported 25,087 tonnes of synthetic rubber in December 2010, up by 4.25 per cent from 24,063 tonnes in the year-ago period. Presently, the country has stock of 39,035 tonnes of synthetic rubber.