UNITED STATES TARIFF COMMISSION CRUDE INDIA (NATURAL) RUBBER, INCLUDING GUAYULE Table 2.- Plantation rubber: World area by territories, in This area includes 6,919 acres planted with Ficus and 178 acres planted with Ceara, all the remainder is Hevea. 2/ The official estimate given in the table for the area under small holders' rubber in Indonesia is based on a survey undertaken by the Indonesian Government in 1936. The following information has been received recently from the Indonesian Department of Economic Affairs: "By the end of January, 1942, some 46 percent of the areas under native rubber in the Outer Possessions, originally estimated from the 1936 tree count to cover 1,683,202 acres, had been measured. The measured acreage exceeded the previous estimate for the same areas by 90 percent and on this basis the Department of Economic Affairs have assessed the total native areas under rubber in SUMMARIES OF TARIFF INFORMATION CRUDE INDIA (NATURAL)RUBBER, INCLUDING GUAYULE (PAR. 1697) 3/ There is no indication of the division between estates' and smallholders' rubber of the areas recently planted in these territories. The acreage under rubber in Trinidad and Tobago has been estimated on the basis of 250 trees per acre on the following data received from the Administration: Castilloa, 980 properties containing 73,536 trees; Hevea, 67 properties containing 182,543 trees. 5/ The following additional information is available: Tanganyika, 315 acres Hevea; 29,249 acres Ceara. Total, 29,564 acres. Uganda, about one-half percent Ceara, the remainder all Hevea; Kenya, all Ceara. 6/ This is Mandated Territory of New Guinea and the acreage shown under rubber includes 1,950 acres under Ficus, the remainder being under Hevea. Source: Rubber Statistical Bulletin, Nov. 1948, table 33, published by the Secretariat of the Rubber Study Group, London, England. Note. Figures in parentheses are estimated or partly estimated. The estimates for British Colonies, with the exception of Trinidad and Tobago, have been received from the Administrations concerned, those for Latin America have been received from the U. S. Department of Agriculture (1 hectare = 2.471 acres). Hevea trees are about 5 to 7 years old before they reach sufficient size (5 to 6 inches in diameter) for the extraction of rubber. Like all agricultural crops of importance, the production of rubber from Hevea trees has been advanced through research. In the beginning, it was the common practice to establish plantations by planting seeds and allowing them to grow into trees naturally. Later, it was found that certain Hevea trees yielded much more rubber than others, and buds from these trees were grafted to normal seedling root stocks. There are now several established kinds of budding stocks for which there are historical records concerning yielding capacity, resistance to disease, and growth characteristics. Further refinements of selecting certain Hevea trees for propagation through research are leading not only to higher yields of rubber per acre, but also to specific quality attributes of the rubber produced. In more recent years, there have also been developed certain strains of selected seeds which are secured by the controlled pollination of the blossoms of high-yielding rubber trees; these seeds grown into mature trees, without budding, also give high yields of rubber per acre. The methods of extracting rubber from the Hevea tree have also been improved by research. Almost all the rubber is now extracted by the paring method with the slope of the cut about 30 degrees from left to right on the trunk of the tree. There are a wide variety of practices in tapping the Hevea tree which result in different yields per acre and different costs of the rubber harvested. Almost all of the methods, however, provide for a bark renewal period of about 6 to 8 years before the tapping-cut returns to the original cutting area on the trunk of the tree. Guayule rubber.--Guayule (Parthenium argentatum) is a shrub having somewhat the same general appearance and habitat as sagebrush. It is indigenous to North Central Mexico with a habitat extending into the Big Bend area of the Rio Grande in Texas. Commercial shipments of guayule rubber have been made from this area since 1907 and it has been estimated that the area might maintain a sustained production of up to 5,000 tons per year. Although the guayule plant secretes latex in individual cells, tapping is not feasible. During the growing period much of the latex coagulates and the most satisfactory method of procuring the rubber is by grinding the entire shrub and separating the rubber from the fibers by a mechanical process. Plantation development of the production of guayule rubber in the United States was started about 30 years ago but no substantial amounts of rubber from plantation guayule have been produced. Other kinds of natural rubbers.--The two kinds of natural rubber, other than Hevea or guayule, which are of some commercial importance are Ceara (maricoba) and mangabeira. UNITED STATES TARIFF COMMISSION CRUDE INDIA (NATURAL) RUBBER, INCLUDING GUAYULE Ceara (manicoba) rubbers are extracted from Manihot trees indigenous to northeastern Brazil (principally the States of Ceara, Piaui and Bahia). This tree has been planted under plantation conditions, principally in Tanganyika, but this was probably before it was known that Hevea yielded much more rubber per tree. It is estimated that potential production from these areas is about 4,000 long tons per year. As far as known, no Ceara rubber is collected or sold in the form of latex; it is considered one of the inferior rubbers and appears on the market in the form of coagulated lumps or "lace." Mangabeira rubber is extracted from the Hancornia tree indigenous to the coastal areas and the States of Minas Gerais and Goyaz of Brazil. It is estimated that potential production of these areas is about 1,000 long tons per year. The larger part of the very small constant production of mangabeira rubber in normal times is sold locally in Brazil in latex form for use as an adhesive in the shoe-making and shoe-repair trades. One of the characteristics of mangabeira rubber is that it remains for long periods in liquid form without the addition of an anticoagulant. Other minor sources of natural rubber are the Castilla tree found in Central America and Mexico, the Ficus tree indigenous to the Far East, and the Kok-saghyz shrub planted in the Soviet Union. World production Immediately before World War II, when annual world production of natural rubber was about 1 million long tons, Malaya and the Netherlands Índies produced about 75 percent of the total, each supplying about one-half of this percentage. The other principal producers were Ceylon, Indo-China, Sarawak and India. During the war, when natural rubber supplies from the Netherlands Indies and Malaya were unavailable because of Japanese occupation and the Allies were critically short of rubber, the production of other countries increased considerably. Ceylon, which produced 60,000 long tons in 1939, increased its output to a peak of 105,000 long tons in 1943. Liberia, which produced about 5,500 long tons annually before the war, increased its production to about 20,000 long tons in 1945. The rise in production in these countries was due both to the employment of strenuous tapping systems and to bringing additional areas of rubber trees into production. Since the war, Malaya and the Netherlands Indies have reestablished their positions as the major suppliers of natural rubber and in 1947 again supplied about 75 percent of the total of 1,255,000 long tons produced in that year. However, in contrast to the prewar period when each of these areas supplied about one-half this percentage, Malaya accounted for about two-thirds of the amount and the Netherlands Indies for the remainder. The great increase in Malayan production may be attributed chiefly to flush yields of rubber from the Hevea trees which had not been tapped during Japanese occupation, the coming into maturity during the war of large areas of bud-grafted (high-yielding) rubber trees, and the lack of restrictions on production. The failure of the Netherlands Indies to attain or surpass its prewar volume of production is primarily due to political unrest in that country. Given political stability, the same factors operating to increase rubber production in Malaya would also prevail in the Netherlands Indies. Table 3 shows world production of natural rubber in principal territories CRUDE INDIA (NATURAL) RUBBER, INCLUDING GUAYULE (PAR. 1697) Table 3.- Natural rubber including latex: World production in 1937 187,533 206,000 450,680 72,500 48,000 50,000 60,000 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 64,000 74,898 76,177 313,915 501,448 244,680 1938 245,689 113,813 359,502 174,266 144,891 319,157 244,389 115,713 360,102 193,161 183,266 376,427 60,000 68,000 333,640 213,562 547,202 276,630 265,043 541,673 90,000 (370,000) (230,000) (600,000) (300,000) (350,000) (650,000) 99,500 (55,000) (100,000) (155,000) (100,000) (100,000) (200,000) 101,500 (35,000) (40,000) (75,000) (50,000) (50,000) (100,000) 105,500 1944 (25,000) (25,000) (25,000) (25,000) (50,000) 98,500 (60,000) 1945 (8,600) (8,600) (5,000) (5,000) (10,000) 97,500 (12,000) 1946 173,787 229,932 403,719 2/ (175,000) (175,000) 94,000 19,975 360,530 285,832 646,362 403,628 294,572 698,200 1947 1948 12,736 101,540 Includes Singapore and the Federation of Malaya. 2/ Although no estates production is indicated, there was a small amount of rubber produced on estates in 1946; the great bulk, however, comes from native sources. 3/ Not available. Source: Rubber Statistical Bulletin, November 1948, table 2, published by the Secretariat of the Rubber Study Group, London, England. Note. Figures in parentheses are estimated or partly estimated. UNITED STATES TARIFF COMMISSION CRUDE INDIA (NATURAL) RUBBER, INCLUDING GUAYULE Prices Pre-World War II.-Aside from the great increase in production, the most striking features of natural rubber trade during the 20 years preceding World War II, were the wide fluctuations in prices, and the restrictive measures taken to control supply and prices. During the first six months of 1922 the average price of natural rubber in New York was about 15 cents per pound. At that time British Malaya was producing over three-fourths of the world output. A large part of the production being in the hands of British-owned companies, the British Government undertook a scheme for restricting exports from British Malaya. The "Stevenson Plan" went into effect in the latter part of 1922. In 1925 prices soared, reaching $1.12 per pound. Strong consumer resistance soon developed, particularly in the United States, where production of reclaimed rubber rose rapidly. Netherlands Indies and other southeastern Asiatic countries increased production from existing groves and began planting more trees. Prices declined sharply after 1925, but remained quite high until 1928 when the Stevenson plan was abandoned, after which prices fell precipitously. The business depression subsequently cut down demand at the same time that constantly increasing quantities of natural rubber were being produced. For a few months in 1932 and 1933 rubber was selling at around 3 cents per pound in New York. Under these conditions efforts were made to reestablish an artificial control. There were negotiations among the governments of the several producing areas, led by Great Britain and Netherlands. Even before a definite agreement was reached, prices rose rapidly. The scheme, known as the International Rubber Regulation Agreement, went into effect June 1, 1934. The International Rubber Regulation Committee consisted of representatives from all the principal areas producing natural rubber. The Committee did not attempt directly to fix prices, but it exercised a powerful influence on the producing regions by direct and effective control of exports. In the administration of the agreement these areas had voting strength more or less in proportion to their productive capacity. Representatives of the Rubber Manufacturers Association of the United States and of British and German rubber manufacturers were allowed to participate in the discussions of the Committee, though with no voting power. Wartime conditions completely changed the activities of the Rubber Regulation Committee but it remained at least nominally in operation until April 30, 1944, when the agreement was permitted to lapse. The International Rubber Regulation Committee was more moderate in its operation and resulted in prices considerably lower and more stable than under the Stevenson Plan. The annual average price in New York during the five years 1935-39 ranged from 12 cents to 19 cents per pound. War and postwar periods.--During World War II, there was no free market in natural rubber and international allocation of natural rubber supplies was under the Combined Raw Materials Board. The United States sponsored incentive rubberproduction programs in all the South and Central American countries in which natural rubber is produced, and in Liberia, West Africa. Under agreements with these countries the United States supplied technical assistance designed to improve tapping and processing operations and to facilitate purchases and shipments; the United States also purchased all rubber offered to it in these countries at guaranteed prices. The United Kingdom inaugurated incentive rubber-production programs in African areas (except Liberia), Ceylon and India. From June 1941 to March 31, 1947, the United States Government was the sole buyer of rubber imported into this country. Natural rubber during this period was sold by the Government to United States manufacturers at a fixed price of 22.5 cents per pound, New York. During 1944, the same year that the International Rubber Regulation was permitted to lapse, the Rubber Study Group was organized by the governments of the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. By May 1948, its member |