Low prices, high stocks aggravate problems faced by farmers, traders
The suspension could also be extended in the face of low rubber prices and difficulty in selling rubber products already in stock.
The problems continue even after several banks, in response to the government policy, have agreed to offer soft loans to buyers of rubber latex.
“We will allow loan amount of up to Bt16 billion. So we believe the rubber price should go up to around Bt80 per kilogram within two months,” Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said after chairing a meeting on how to tackle poverty and reduce equality in Thai society.
The government has now offered to keep the rubber-sheet price at the rate of Bt64.5 per kilo through a subsidy of Bt1,000 per rai. Local rubber growers in Trang province, however, say their rubber latex can fetch only between Bt35 and Bt36 per kilo because 40 rubber cooperatives under the assembly are already suffering from cash-flow problems.
Sompoj Chaithong, a trader in rubber latex, said he had been struggling hard to keep himself and his associate rubber growers afloat in such difficult times.
“I have my own network of local rubber growers. If I don’t buy rubber latex from them to make rubber sheets, they will be in trouble,” Sompoj said.
“But now, I end up owing Bt300,000 to loan sharks because I can’t sell what’s in stock”.
Stuck with stocks
Sompoj now has stocks of about six tonnes of rubber sheets, worth around Bt1million.
He said the Trang Rubber Cooperatives Assembly could not buy any more rubber sheets from him because of its financial problems.
He had tried but failed to sell the sheets to the central market in Hat Yai Central Rubber Market in Songklha province.
Sompoj said his family was now paying Bt9,000 in interest to loan sharks each month.
He said if the government did not solve the rubber problems quickly, he would certainly join a rubber-farmer rally when it was held.
