Goodyear Rubber in California noticed that natural rubber prices across key markets have experienced further losses even though there is a deficit in the world supply. In fact, from January to May 2017, a deficit of about 600,000 metric tons was recorded. The shortfall is expected to widen in the short term before it drops in December.

Prices

Despite the shortfall in supply, prices have also fallen, largely due to external factors in the sector. It is surprising that the current phase of low rubber prices reflects a downward trend noticed in all commodities rather than an occurrence specific to rubber.

One downward trend is that crude oil prices fell 17% from February through May this year. However, the prices are anticipated to recover from $46 a barrel $54 per barrel by last quarter 2017. This anticipated recovery is expected to lift the natural rubber market during the remainder of the year.

Another factor is that the commodity markets also appear to be affected by any indication of an uptick in interest rates in the US.

Finally, sharp appreciation in the Chinese yuan and the Japanese yen seem to be another external factor affecting natural rubber prices this year.

About Goodyear Rubber

Goodyear Rubber is involved in all aspects of the rubber manufacturing process from design through production with the goal of complete customer satisfaction. We are ISO 9001:2008 certified and ROHS compliant. Contact us at (909) 987-1774 or custserv@goodyearrubber.com or visit www.goodyearrubber.com for more information.

Goodyear Rubber, based in Southern California, manufactures rubber molds, extrusions, rubber sheeting and roll coverings. Our rubber manufacturing solutions are applied by customers in the canning, aerospace, defense, construction, sporting goods, commercial, automotive, mining, food processing and material handling sectors.