JAKARTA (Yosefardi) – Natural rubber market is expected to remain in a narrow trading range in the second half of 2013, Sipef, one of producers in Indonesia, said.
“The market has settled around current market prices for the last weeks and prices are well below budgets from the tire manufacturers. We expect a stable market with good off-take after the holiday season, but stocks first need to be consumed before we can expect any significant price rally,” said SIpef in its first half 2013 report.
Average natural rubber price in the second quarter of 2013 was US$3,030 per ton, down substantially from US$3722/ton in the corresponding period of 2012 (RSS3 FOB Singapore).
Sipef produced natural rubber in Sumatra, Indonesia and develops plantations in Papua New Guinea.
The company produced 5,276 tons of natural rubber in the first half of 2013, down almost 7% from the corresponding period of 2012.
“The rubber market has been suffering from the slower Chinese economic growth, which had a significant impact as China is the biggest rubber importer. The US and the EU, meanwhile, are still in the de-stocking mode, therefore the demand on the open market was lackluster,” Sipef argued.