Malaysia’s natural rubber (NR) production decreased by 39 per cent month-on-month (MoM) to 29,920 tonnes in February 2022 against 49,087 tonnes in January 2022.
Consumption also showed that the production of NR decreased by 40 per cent from February 2021 of 49,840 tonnes, year-on-year (YoY), according to Chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin of the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DoSM).
“Production of NR in February 2022 for Malaysia was mainly contributed by smallholders sector (88.4%) compared to estates sector (11.6%),” he said in a statement today.
The decline in NR production was in line with The Association of Natural Rubber Producing countries (ANRPC) January-February monthly report, which stated that despite the positive sentiment in the NR market, there were also a number of challenges that may hinder its growth, he was quoted as saying.
The supply side of the equation was heavily influenced by adverse climate, manpower shortages in natural rubber-producing countries amid the increased proliferation in Covid-19 variants and Omicron cases around the world and a tapping-off season that may exacerbate raw material supply congestion in the month ahead.
Total stocks of natural rubber increased 2.8% in February 2022 to 318,699 tonnes as compared to 310,002 tonnes in January 2022.
Rubber processors factory was contributing 93.5% of the final stocks followed by rubber consumers factory (6.4%) and rubber estates (0.1%).
Exports of Malaysia’s natural rubber totalled at 47,682 tonnes in February 2022, a decrease of 6.8% as compared to January 2022 (51,160 tonnes).
China continued to dominate as the main importer of natural rubber with 50.8% of total exports in February 2022 followed by the United States (5.1%), Germany (3.5%), Turkey (3.4%) and Brazil (2.1%).
“The export performance was contributed by natural rubber-based products such as gloves, tyre, tube, rubber thread and condom,” he said.
Gloves were the main exports of rubber-based products with a value of RM1.9 billion in February 2022, a decrease of 13.5% as compared to RM2.2 billion in January 2022,” he said.
An analysis of the average monthly price showed that latex concentrate recorded an increase of 15% to 658.14 sen/kg in February 2022 versus 572.08 sen/kg in January 2022, according to DoSM.
Meanwhile, scrap was 0.6% higher at 606.41 sen/kg in February 2022 against 603.05 sen/kg in January 2022.
Similar trend was also observed for all Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR) which increased between 0.9 and 14.9%.
Citing the World Bank Commodity Price Data report, DoSM said the Technically Specified Rubber (TSR 20) price increased by 0.6 per cent from US$1.78/kg to US$1.79/kg (US$1=RM4.23) MoM, while the Singapore/Malaysia type increased 7.0% from US$1.97/kg to US$2.11/kg.
Mohd Uzir also said prices of rubber in the international market would be affected by Russia-Ukraine was as Russia is a major exporter of synthetic rubber, mainly polybutadiene rubber (PBR) and isoprene rubber (IR). One of its main end uses is the production of tyres .
Russia exported US$1.34 billion in synthetic rubber in 2020,the sixth largest exporter of synthetic rubber in the world.
