Natural rubber exports up 3.2% in January

KUALA LUMPUR:Natural rubber exports in January 2014 increased 3.2% to 70,423 tonnes from the same period in 2013, the Statistics Department said on Wednesday.

Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR) contributed 94.2% of the total exports, with 55% of that comprising SMR 20, the department said in a statement.

Natural rubber was exported mainly to China (49%), followed by Germany (14%), the United States (6.9%), Brazil (3.4%), Iran (2.7%), South Africa (2.4%), Portugal (2.1%) and South Korea (2.1%).

However, compared with December last year, natural rubber exports declined by 15.5%, the department said. 

Production for the month under review totalled 91,567 tonnes, up 3.5% year-on-year, with the smallholding sector contributing 93.6% whilst the estate sector accounting for 6.4%. 

"Kedah produced the highest natural rubber in estates, accounting for 21.8%, followed by Negeri Sembilan (20.2%) and Johor (15.2%)," the department said.

Total natural rubber for domestic consumption in January 2014 was recorded at 35,338 tonnes, down 6.2% year-on-year, with the rubber gloves industry being the highest consuming industry at 25,492 tonnes (72.1%), followed by tyres and tubes (7.1%) and rubber thread (6.6%). 

The country's natural rubber stocks stood at 221,856 tonnes as at January 2014, a 32.1% increase from December 2013 and 17.5% higher compared with January 2013.

The average monthly price of latex concentrate was 485.30 sen, a 9.4% fall from December 2013 and also a 21% drop from the same month in 2013.

Production productivity for the month under review was recorded at 142 kg per ha, up by 8.6% from the previous month but a 4% decrease year-on-year. - Bernama