Natural rubber output eases by 0.2 pct in January 2024

KUALA LUMPUR: Natural rubber (NR) production slipped by 0.2 per cent to 30,273 tonnes in January 2024 from 30,342 tonnes in December 2023, said the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).

Year-on-year comparison, however, showed that NR output rose by 2.8 per cent from 29,451 tonnes in January 2023.

In a statement yesterday, chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said 88.3 per cent of the production in January was contributed by smallholders and 11.7 per cent by the estates sector.

On inventory, he said total NR stocks grew by 6.5 per cent to 203,772 tonnes from 191,304 tonnes in December 2023.

He said rubber processing factories accounted for 92.0 per cent of the stocks followed by rubber consuming factories (7.9 per cent) and rubber estates (0.1 per cent).

Mohd Uzir said Malaysia's NR exports amounted to 43,111 tonnes in January, down 5.4 per cent from December 2023's 45,591 tonnes.

China remained the main destination for NR exports, accounting for 32 per cent of total exports in January 2024, followed by the United Arab Emirates (13.5 per cent), Germany (13.0 per cent), the United States (7.3 per cent) and India (6.3 per cent).

“The export performance was contributed by NR-based products such as gloves, tyres, tubes, rubber threads and condoms,” he said.

Mohd Uzir noted that gloves were the main exports among rubber-based products with a value of RM1.02 billion in January, a growth of 7.3 per cent from RM0.95 billion in December 2023.

According to DoSM, analysis of the average monthly price showed that concentrated latex recorded an increase of 8.9 per cent in January to 585.74 sen per kg, while scrap rubber increased by 7.4 per cent to 583.29 sen per kg.

“Prices for all Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR) grades increased between 5.9 per cent and 8.8 per cent,” it said.

According to the Malaysian Rubber Board Digest in January 2024, the Kuala Lumpur rubber market showed a mixed trend throughout the month.

“Generally, the market sentiment was supported by favourable market fundamentals, especially tighter rubber supply due to wet weather in major rubber-producing countries,” it said.