Showa Denko K.K. (SDK) to Raise Price of Polychloroprene Synthetic Rubber.

Tokyo, Japan, Sept 29, 2005 - (JCN Newswire) - Showa Denko  K.K. (SDK) will raise the price of polychloroprene synthetic rubber by US$300 per metric ton for all grades starting with deliveries on and after October 11, 2005.

Polychloroprene synthetic rubber is being used in automotive parts and general industrial parts that require flame retardancy and resistance to oils and weathering.

Although SDK raised its polychloroprene synthetic rubber price in November 2004 due to the sharp rise in naphtha and butadiene prices, the raw material cost has continued to rise.

Moreover, the domestic naphtha price is expected to further rise to \45,000-\50,000 per kiloliter in the October-December period this year from \35,000 per kiloliter for the same period last year.

SDK has worked hard to absorb cost increases through rationalization efforts. However, the company has concluded that it has no alternative but to ask customers to bear part of the burden in order to stabilize its purchase of raw materials and supply of polychloroprene synthetic rubber products to customers.

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