China to buy 50 KT rubber for reserve by mid-Apr -industry

Published: 17 Mar 2009 23:00:31 PST

GUANGZHOU, March 18 - China's State Reserve Bureau will buy 50,000 tonnes of natural rubber by mid-April from domestic farms, an industry official said on Wednesday, as the government aims to prop up prices hurt by weak demand.

Zhu Xiuyan, Chairman of China Natural Rubber Association, said the purchases, from the inventories built last year, has already started.

The amount was in line with an earlier Reuters report that said the government planned purchases for state reserve of 65,000 tonnes for April.

"The impact from the global financial crisis will last a long time. If the economy does not show marked recovery, we can't expect a rally in rubber prices," Zhu told reporters.

Zhu, though, expected a larger crop this year due to better weather.

China is the world's largest rubber consumer and imports nearly half of what it uses.