The consumption of natural rubber (NR) increased substantially in November and December, according to the latest data by the Rubber Board. In November, the growth in consumption was seven per cent compared to the 4.3 per cent growth in production. In December, production increased one per cent whereas consumption increased 2.4 per cent. Till October, this pattern was vice-versa as the growth in consumption was very meagre, compared to the sharp upward trend in production.
In October, production rose 8.4 per cent while consumption was up 2.7 per cent. Cumulative consumption in the April-November period increased 0.7 per cent, production increased 4.9 per cent. But in the April-December period, consumption increased 1.2 per cent, as against 4.3 per cent rise in production.
A better performance by the tyre industry has contributed much to the increase in NR consumption. According to Rajiv Budhraja, director general, Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association (Atma), November and December were better months for the tyre industry. According to the data by Atma, the highest monthly production of truck and bus tyres in the current financial year was in November.
Around 1.44 million tyres were produced in November compared to 1.23 million tyres in October and 1.21 million tyres in September. The average monthly production during April-November period was 2.21 million compared to 2.11 million for the same period in 2010-11, registering a growth of four per cent. He said the better trend may continue in the coming months, too. This upward trend in tyre manufacturing led to high consumption of NR.
Vinod T Simon, president, All India Rubber Industries Association told Business Standard that the auto components sector had done better in November and December, compared to the previous months. This is the only reason behind the recent rise in the consumption of natural rubber. The automobile industry had done better in these months which in turn helped the components sector to perform better. He added that most of the rubber-based small and medium units are still in serious trouble due to low import duty of finished goods and the high price of NR.
