It’s the first day of the 11th Annual International Latex Conference in Ohio where everything from synthetic latex blends concerns to the global outlook of natural rubber latex will be discussed. Some questions attendees can expect to be answered:  

• Could the growth of guayule production in the U.S. lead to the re-vitalization of the latex dipping industry in this country again?
• What’s the short and medium term outlook for synthetic latex feedstocks? With the recent performance in the markets for base energy and commodity petrochemicals volatile and unpredictable, could it get any worse?
• How are manufacturers reducing production costs? Is the final product meeting ASTM standards?

Results of the conference to be posted shortly.