Kochi: World Rubber Congress opened here on Thursday June 17. The two-day meet will discuss various aspects of the sector.

Speakers at the congress pointed out that rubber price was fluctuating for the past eight years and now it has come to a stand still with Rs.64 a kg for the RSS-4 category. The current price was close to the highest peak rubber price ever had , back in the mid-1995.

The congress, which from next year would be an annual event, has been organised by Tefla's Conferences and Events in partnership with leading players in the sector. Delegates from plantation, manufacture, trading and research fields apart from experts and administrators are participating in the meet.

Dr B.C Sekhar, an international rubber market expert, said natural rubber faced no danger from synthetic rubber as long as the prices did not breach the Rs 90-100 a kg band.``Once the price breaches the Rs 90-100 a kg band, then synthetic rubber becoming a viable option arises,'' he said.

He said that the current global price was very good but there was still scope for further rise. At the present price of natural rubber, extensive manufacture of synthetic rubber was uneconomical. He said the domestic demand for rubber in India was set to grow with the laying of more and more highways and roads which would promote production of more vehicle and hence of more tyres. In view of this, the rubber growers could look ahead for a bright future.

The Rubber Board chairman, S.M. Desalphine, said that though global production would be in excess of demand this year and the next, it would not have much of an impact on the price. Since the demand was growing and since production could not grow unlimited In the long run, the price was likely to go up. He suggested that the price of natural rubber should be below the `threshold of substitution' in order not to trigger extensive manufacture and use of synthetic rubber.

This scenario, however, was unlikely in the near future. India was the fourth largest producer and consumer of natural rubber. China was the top user, followed by the U.S. Rubber productivity was the highest in India. During the first half of this month, average price of RSS-4 increased to Rs 60.45 a kg from Rs 58.55 in May and Rs 57.85 in April, he said.

K.K. Abraham, president of Rubber Marketing Federation, pointed out that the rubber growers now had no complaints about the price they were getting. But, he sought Government support to promote exports. Financial incentive from the Government was necessary for at least five years to establish India as a major player in the international rubber trade.

T. Vidyasagar, head of the Comex, assured the growers that the future of rubber was bright as more road and more vehicles were being made in the country. Kerala, which grows 90 per cent of India's total rubber output, that the current feel-good atmosphere in the rubber sector is unlikely to change soon.