November 30, 2001	Friday	Ramazan 14, 1422

MUMBAI, Nov 29: India plans to export about 20,000 tons of natural rubber in the current year to March by giving dealers financial incentives, in a bid to revive depressed prices, government officials and traders said on Thursday.

Domestic rubber prices have fallen despite a marginal decline in output, mainly on account of lower global prices and poor demand from tyre manufacturing companies, they said.

“The market is bad this year. We are not getting enough buyers,” an official of the Kerala State Rubber Cooperative Ltd (RUBCO), told Reuters.

The southern state of Kerala produces 90 to 95 per cent of India’s total natural rubber production.

Output in India, the world’s third-largest producer of natural rubber, fell to 217,535 tons in the period from April to August, from 219,920 tons a year earlier.

India produced 630,405 tons of rubber last year and exported nearly 13,000 tons to countries such as Nepal, Russia, Australia, Indonesia, Pakistan and Mexico.

Traders said local prices of RSS4 grade rubber have declined to 28 ($0.58) to 29 rupees per kg from over 30 rupees a year ago. It was quoted at about 35-36 rupees in June.

Rubber prices in Thailand, the world’s largest producer, also recently slipped through the 50 cents per kg mark for the first time in decades, traders said.

“The market revival in the present scenario mainly depends on a pick-up in demand,” said an official of the Rubber Board, set up by the federal government to promote the industry.

The Board provides an incentive of 3.5 rupees per kg to exporters, traders said, adding the state government also plans to hike its support to 3.5 rupees from 2.0 rupees.

“We have already bagged orders to export about 2,500 tons,” said an official of the Kerala State Cooperative Rubber Marketing Federation.—Reuters