most of the world's rubber comes from tropical africa.
most of the world's rubber comes from tropical africa.
where does most of the world's rubber come from?
tropical africa
thailand ranks as the world's largest rubber producer and exporter, producing around 4.3 to 4.5 million tonnes per year, it consumes only 519,000 tons per year. it provides about 40 percent of the world's natural rubber, mostly used in aircraft and automobile tires. but the rubber industry has faced a series of challenges. alongside drought in 2015-2016, thailand was hit hard by an oversupply in international rubber markets. following a record harvest in 2011, thailand increased rubber acreage by 45 percent. other top producers in the region followed suit. concomitantly, china's demand for rubber decreased by 10 percent. china is the world's largest natural rubber consumer, using 4,150,000 tons in 2013. at one point the price of the world's benchmark smoked rubber sheet dropped as low as us$1.27 per kilogram, or 80 percent below the record high of us$6.40 per kg in february 2011. similarly, rubber futures in shanghai have dropped by 22 percent and the export price of thai rubber by 23 percent. then, as prices began to rebound, the southern provinces of thailand, where two-thirds of the thai rubber plantations are located, were hit by torrential rains and flooding at the peak of the rubber-tapping season. the rubber authority of thailand forecasts that output will drop 7.6 percent in 2017. farmers, unable to harvest rubber sap due to high water, are unable to take advantage of the highest rubber prices in four years. largely due to the flooding, prices for unsmoked uss3 rubber sheets in nakhon si thammarat have increased steadily and reached 84.32 baht (us$2.38) per kilogram in january 2017 and will likely go higher. rubber growers face an even greater danger: rubber trees die after 20 days when inundated by flood waters.
agriculture in thailand
the conditions on the grid were dry before the race, although the sky was overcast; weather forecasts predicted rain near the end of the race. most of the frontrunners began the race on the harder compound tyre. rain that had fallen earlier that morning had removed some of the rubber on the track, meaning that graining, when small grains of rubber come off a tyre, was likely to be a problem; out of the two tyre types, the harder would better cope with this. räikkönen made a good start, retaining his first position; massa behind him maintained his second place. alonso, who started third, was passed by both trulli and kubica, but re-passed kubica at the hairpin turn exit. glock also made a good start, taking sixth after passing webber. going into the first corner, button touched bourdais, resulting in damage to the honda's front wing. hamilton, who started 13th, passed several drivers to move into 10th by the end of lap one.
2008 french grand prix