It is expected that the consumption of natural rubber will increase in 2021.

According to foreign media reports, Salvatore Pinizzotto, Secretary - General of the International Rubber Study Group (IRSG), said on Wednesday that the IRSG expects the consumption of natural rubber to increase by 7% in 2021, after a decline of 8.1% in 2020 due to the COVID - 19 pandemic. He said at the 18th Shanghai Derivatives Market Forum that the recovery of rubber demand in 2021 may be lower than expected. Although the Asian economy is growing steadily, the consumption of natural rubber is expected to increase by 5.3% in 2022. He said that due to the damage to demand caused by the COVID - 19 pandemic, rubber consumption decreased significantly in 2020. Despite an increase in mature regions, the production intensity of natural rubber is declining. The Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) predicts that the output of natural rubber in 2020 will be 13.13 million tons, and the demand will be 12.904 million tons. Pinizzotto said, "If we look at the production and demand trends this year, the demand for natural rubber is expected to grow by 7%, and the demand for synthetic rubber is expected to grow by 7.2%. The output of natural rubber this year will increase by 5%, and any production cuts in Southeast Asia will be offset by increased production in other producing areas."