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Rubber prices continue to plummet; workers face dire economic circumstances as others feel the knock-on effects
Thu 18 Dec 2008,
Asah, IMNA
Rubber prices in Burma and Thailand continue to plummet, creating dire circumstances for workers and knock-on effects for the rest of the economy.
Rubber prices in both countries have been declining steadily for months, with a kilogram of rubber fetching as little as 600 kyat. This is less than a fourth of the price of rubber a few months ago, and down from 1,000 kyat at the end of October. Kyat are currently exchanged at a rate of 1,250 kyat to $1 U.S. dollar.
Prices are better in Thailand, but only slightly so. One kilogram currently fetches 28 baht, down from 100 baht per kilogram two months ago. Baht are currently exchanged at a rate of 35 to $1 U.S. dollar.
People reliant on rubber report severe hardships in both countries. “We can't afford anything. We earned 10,000 baht per month in the past, but we can barely get 3,000 baht,” said Nai Oo, a Mon rubber worker in Surat Thani, Thailand, told IMNA.
Nai Oo retains his job, but he said that the declining prices had nearly bankrupted his employer, who lost his truck and motorcycle after defaulting on a loan.
Other Burmese workers in Thailand report losing their jobs; many have had to return to Burma. “I lost my job in southern Thailand and had to move to a rubber plantation in the Three Pagoda Pass border area,” said Mehn Mon Htaw. “But we do not have enough money or work on this plantation either.” Mehn Mon Htaw said that he now has no money and can afford neither a trip to Bangkok to find work nor the trip home to Burma.
Workers who do return to Burma find economic circumstances that are even more difficult. “The rubber price is just 300 kyat per pound. The highest quality rubber only gets 350 kyat,” said a plantation owner in a far corner of Mudon Township. “Even at this cheap price, nobody will buy rubber.” Closer to Mudon Town the price is slightly higher, but it is not easing the economic strain.
The low values and lack of sales mean that many plantation workers have ended up jobless. Others retain their jobs, but at a fraction of their earlier salaries. Many of these workers are from middle Burma and are only in Mon State to work. Without strong family or community connections, they now find themselves jobless and with no one to turn to.
Rubber is one of Mon State’s primary agricultural products. The virtual collapse of the market is, consequently, having knock-on effects through out Mon State’s economy. According to one woman in Mudon, real estate prices have dropped along with the rubber prices. Fewer people are also eating at restaurants or buying products, says a shop owner from Mudon Township. Fruits and vegetables that sellers could once count on re-selling now sit, un-purchased and festering in the dry cold season heat.
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