KUALA LUMPUR, 2 September – Malaysia exported less than half as much rubber products in the first half of 2022 (H1 2022) as it did in the same period last year, according to the Malaysian Rubber Council (MRC).
In the first six months of this year, the total exports of rubber products amounted to RM15.626 billion, down from RM39.826 billion recorded from January to June 2021.
On the other hand, there was little change in the amount of rubber exported. In H1 2022, Malaysia sold RM4.609 billion worth of the raw material, just 1.01% up from the RM4.563 billion recorded in H1 2021, the MRC said in a statement today.
The export of latex products, excluding gloves, expanded 35.5% to RM1.23 billion in H1 2022 from RM907 million in the previous corresponding period.
These include items such as catheters, foam products, condoms and rubber toys.
Foam products registered the highest rate of increase, climbing 182.4% from RM71.7 million in H1 2021 to RM202.5 million in H1 2022.
The MRC said there was room for growth for Malaysian tyre products. It recorded an increase of 6% to RM883.2 million in H1 2022 from RM832.8 million in the previous corresponding period.
Brazil raised its import of Malaysian tyres by 36.9% to RM104.7 million, registering the highest rate of increase. Thailand is second with a 25% increase to RM44.6 million, but the US, which comes in third at 14.4% remains the largest importer with RM403.3 million worth of tyre products.
CEO Nor Hizwan Ahmad said now that Malaysia has an indication of the size of the market for rubber and rubber products, there should be a focus on new investments, technological advances and greener products to grow exports.
He said Malaysia would be participating in trade shows locally and abroad as part of an effort to promote its rubber products and to discover new markets.
Among the events on its calendar is the EVM Asia Expo 2020 that will be hosted by the Malaysia Industry-Government Group for High Technology and supported by the Malaysia Automotive Robotics and IoT Institute. The event, originally scheduled for 2020, was postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Among the events Malaysia will also join abroad is the Automechanika Frankfurt 2022, that will be held in Frankfurt, Germany this month. — FMT
