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Published on August 14, 2007

Sukhum Wongek, director of the Rubber Research Institute of Thailand, said small manufacturers faced higher raw-material costs, while the stronger baht resulted in lower margins.

In addition, their production efficiency needs financial support, particularly soft loans for machinery replacement as well as to maintain working capital.

Sukhum added that the price of natural rubber tended to decline in line with world prices. However, the International Rubber Study Group predicted that global rubber consumption would reach 10.5 million tonnes this year, while supply will be 10.42 million tonnes.

Thailand's rubber production is expected to rise from 3.13 million tonnes last year to 3.3 million tonnes this year, an increase of 5 per cent. The increased production is from high-quality rubber plants that yield 284 kilograms per rai.

So far, the total area of rubber plantation is 14.35 million rai, of which 10.9 million rai have produced yield.

Normally, the produce enters the market from June to November, resulting in a price drop.