Rubber imports double to Rs 2,000 cr in April-Oct

Rubber imports double to Rs 2,000 cr in April-Oct
Sensitive products' imports jump 14% to Rs 40,499 cr.


New Delhi, Jan. 10

Rubber imports have nearly doubled to over Rs 2,000 crore in April-October 2010 and, along with a surge in other sensitive items such as automobiles, edible oils and milk, led to a 14.1 per cent rise in import of such products during the same period to Rs 40,499 crore.

With domestic supplies not meeting demands, rubber imports have risen 93.1 per cent to Rs 2,026.84 crore from Rs 1,049.6 crore during April-October 2009, according to data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Monday.

Currently, domestic rubber prices are about Rs 210-215 a kg, whereas international prices are about Rs 240 a kg. Last month, to increase domestic availability of the item and check rising prices, the Government had cut import duty on natural rubber to 7.5 per cent from 20 per cent for shipments up to 40,000 tonnes till March 31, 2011. After that date, the duty will be reinstated at whichever is the lower of 20 per cent or Rs 20 a kg.

Autos, auto parts

Automobile imports also saw a 114.3 per cent jump to Rs 1,249.92 crore during the period, while that of parts and accessories of motor vehicles rose 30.1 per cent to Rs 8,607 crore.

Imports of edible oil increased 11.8 per cent to Rs 15,882 crore. Within this segment, crude oil imports went up 17.2 per cent, while that of refined oil fell 16 per cent. Increase in edible oil import is mainly due to substantial increase in import of soyabean crude oil, the official statement said.

Imports of milk and milk products saw four-fold jump to Rs 536.12 crore. Foodgrains surged to Rs 211.25 crore from Rs 12.47 crore.

Alcoholic beverages increased 55.4 per cent to Rs 287.4 crore.

Total imports

While total import of 415 sensitive products increased to Rs 40,499 crore (April-October 2010) from Rs 35,487 crore during the previous year, the gross import of all commodities was Rs 8,89,827 crore against Rs 7,43,469 crore.

Imports of pulses, fruits and vegetables (including nuts), cotton and silk, spices and tea and coffee declined during the period; that of all other items, including products of SSI, marble and granite, increased.

Imports of sensitive items from Indonesia, China, Argentina, Korea, Malaysia, the US, Germany, Ukraine, Thailand, Australia, Cote D' Ivoire, the UK, Czech Republic, Vietnam and New Zealand have gone up while those from Myanmar, Canada, Brazil and Japan have gone down.


Spot rubber prices surge to new high

Kottayam, Jan. 10

Spot rubber made another record on Monday. The market moved up on fresh buying and short covering, though there were only marginal gains on the National Multi Commodity Exchange. Domestic supply concerns continued to cast their shadow over trading activities and it was difficult to find out a quantity seller even at those awesome levels. The trend was mixed as ungraded rubber closed unchanged amidst low volumes.

Indian rubber prices are likely to set record highs this week buoyed by good demand and rally overseas though profit taking may limit the gains, dealers and analysts said. Demand from tyre companies was intact despite record high prices. A few farmers were holding back stocks expecting a further rise in prices.

Sheet rubber improved to Rs 215 (214) a kg, according to traders. The grade finished flat at Rs 214.50 a kg, both at Kottayam and Kochi as reported by the Rubber Board.

Futures firm

In futures, the January series for RSS 4 firmed up to Rs 214.90 (214.24), February to Rs 223.00 (221.01), March to Rs 228.12 (225.97) and April to Rs 233.90 (232.68) a kg on the NMCE.

RSS 3 (spot) slipped to Rs 239.68 (239.87) a kg at Bangkok. Spot rates were (Rs/kg): RSS-4: 215 (214); RSS-5: 204.50 (203.50); ungraded: 200 (200); ISNR 20: 212 (211) and latex 60 per cent: 148 (146).



Auto Sales Continue To Remain On Fast-Track in India

Automobile manufacturers have ended the third quarter of this year with substantial increase in vehicle sales over the same period last year. However, rising input costis a cause for concern. Manufacturers have started hiking vehicle prices to compensate for the raw material price increase.
The industry's performance in the third quarter comes on the back of strong second quarter sales. Despite worries in the form of inflation, rising interest rates and input costs, manufacturers are confident of ending the financial year with a strong growth in vehicle sales, much higher than what they had predicted or anticipated at the beginning of the year.
Car market leader Maruti Suzuki, which commands nearly half of the passenger car market, registered a 28 per cent increase in vehicle sales in the October-December 2010 period over the same period in the previous year, while two-wheeler leader Hero Honda Motors posted a 29 per cent growth in vehicle sales. According to Mr Venu Srinivasan, Chairman and Managing Director, TVS Motor Company, rising input cost is just one aspect, the other issues being inflation and increasing interest rates. The industry is still optimistic and expects 12-15 per cent growth in bikes and cars next year. “Cautious, but not worried at this point in time,” is how he put it.
The significant developments during the quarter included the Hero group announcing that it will be buying its partner Honda's 26 per cent stake in the joint venture and Mahindra & Mahindra signing a definitive agreement to acquire SsangYong of Korea.
Mr Ajay Seth, Chief Financial Officer, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, said commodity prices went up substantially during the third quarter, which would definitely hit margins.
According to him, steel prices wentup 10-15 per cent, other precious metals 15-20 per cent, and rubber prices were also up substantially. Besides, crude oil price has also moved up. The third quarter of last year was the lowest point as far as the commodity prices were concerned, according to him.
For automobile manufacturers such as Maruti Suzuki, which import components from Japan, the appreciating Yen was another cause for concern. Inflation would also push up prices of consumables and services, while rising interest rates would affect availability of finance.



Rains Plague Narathiwat; Eleven Districts Flooded in Thailand

Flooding in the southern provinces of Narathiwat extended to 11 districts with the deepest floods in Sungai Kolok reported at about 60-130 centimetres depth.
Sunday's Narathiwat weather is reported as cloudy in all 13 districts with scattered rain in some areas. The main three rivers overflowed their banks, inundating homes and farmlands in low-lying areas.
In other districts, flooding is as 40-60 centimetres deep on average, affecting 38,000 people in 10,000 homes in 11 districts. More than 9,000 rais (3,600 acres) of farmland and 67 main and minor roads were flooded. Ten schools were flooded and are likely to be closed Monday (January 10). More than 450 residents in Rangae, Waeng and Sungai Kolok districts were evacuated to temporary shelters.
Local residents began buying dried food to hoard in fear of rising prices of necessities.
The Meteorological Department office in Songkhla warned of strong winds and waves in the Gulf of Thailand. Small boats should keep ashore in the next few days.
In Songkhla, rubber plantation workers began tapping rubber Sunday (January 9) for the first day after three months of nearly continuous rain.




Stimulant abuse kills off latex flow

THE high rubber price has prompted many smallholders to tap as much latex as possible from their rubber trees. Some smallholders have been using stimulants to get more latex from each tapping.
But those who are not educated on when and how to use such stimulants properly have found portions of their rubber tree bark dry up and not yielding latex any more.
Greenyield Bhd executive director Dr S. Sivakumaran, based in Selangor, said stimulants should only be prescribed by those who were properly trained.
Sold in liquid or gaseous form, these latex stimulants must be applied on selective portions of the tree bark at the correct dosage.
"When there is improper use or overdose of ethylene, a plant hormone, you get brown bask.
"That is when the latex vessels in the bark get clogged up and this process is irreversible.
"Rubber trees don't die from over-stimulation. But the bark portion that has been over-stimulated just stops yielding latex."
In Malaysia, rubber trees seasonally shed their leaves in the months of February to May.
"We strongly advise rubber tappers not to stimulate their trees during this time," the scientist said.



Major rubber expansion in NE approved

GUWAHATI, Jan 9 – With an annual turnover of over Rs 760 crores in 2010, rubber cultivation in the Northeastern States has emerged a major player in the economy of the region. By the end of the XIIth Plan in 2016-17, an additional 60,000 hectares of land will be brought under rubber cultivation giving a big boost to the rural economy of the region.
The major expansion programme in the North East has already been approved by the Government of India as scope for further expansion in the traditional growing areas in Kerala and Tamilnadu is extremely limited. As the demand for rubber in the country continues to grow at a rapid pace, tremendous possibilities have opened up for the region as over 4.5 lakh hectares of land has been identified as suitable for rubber cultivation by the Rubber Board. Only about one lakh hectares of land in the region has so far been brought under rubber cultivation.
“Rubber plantation can bring about the much needed economic and social transformation in the region”, said KG Mohanan, Additional Rubber Production Commissioner while speaking to a group of newsmen here yesterday. He explained “one hectare of rubber plantation can provide regular employment to one person for at least 25 years – the life span of the rubber tree.”
Out of the total 4.5 lakh hectares identified suitable for rubber in different NE states,Assam alone has about 2 lakh ha which could be gainfully put under rubber cultivation. The prospective areas in the state are mainly distributed in in Goalpara , Kamrup , Dhhbri, Kokrajhar, Baska,Bongaigaon, Nowgaon , Karbi Anglong , Darang, Cachar, and Karimganj districts and selected pockets of Lakhimpur , Sibasagar, Jorhat and Dibrugarh districts. All these identified areas are the uncultivated or under utilized, fallow high lands and low elevation hills ( tillas) used for environmentally hazardous joom cultivation.
Rubber cultivation in the region gained momentum from 1976 onwards when State Governments in NE started setting up corporations to take up its cultivation. But it gained popularity among the small growers only from 1985 onwards when the Rubber Board began aggressively promoting cultivation of rubber in the region by launching the scheme “Accelerated Rubber Development in the NE”. The scheme provides for a lot of incentives, subsidies and free extension support to encourage small growers in the region to actively take up rubber cultivation.
Out of the total 4.5 lakh hectares identified suitable for rubber in different NE states,Assam alone has about 2 lakh ha which could be gainfully put under rubber cultivation. The prospective areas in the state are mainly distributed in Goalpara, Kamrup, Dhhbri, Kokrajhar, Baska, Bongaigaon, Nagaon, Karbi Anglong, Darrang, Cachar and Karimganj districts and selected pockets of Lakhimpur, Sibasagar, Jorhat and Dibrugarh districts. All these identified areas are uncultivated or under-utilised, fallow highlands and low-elevation hills used for jhum cultivation.