KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian rubber industry continues its upward trajectory with exports increasing 169.6 per cent to RM21.84 billion for the first quarter (Q1) ended March 31, 2021 from RM8.10 billion last year.
Malaysian Rubber Council (MRC) chief executive officer Nurul Islam Mohammed Yusoff said the downstream rubber products industry had accounted for 89.5 per cent of the total rubber exports.
This was equivalent to RM19.54 billion or an increase of 213.8 per cent, driven by strong increase in the latex goods sector.
Nurul Islam said the latex goods such as rubber gloves, latex threads, and condoms recorded a total increase of 250.6 per cent due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
"In Q1 2021, latex goods accounted for 93.7 per cent of total exports of rubber products while dry rubber products accounted for the remaining 6.3 per cent.
"The gloves sub sector remained the largest export revenue generator for the rubber industry.
"Made up mainly by the medical gloves, the gloves sub-sector increased nearly four fold or 265.7 per cent to hit RM17.86 billion in the first three months of 2021," he said.
On the dry rubber products sector, he said after a decline last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the sector bounced back to record a double-digit growth of 22.1 per cent to reach RM1.26 billion in 2021 from RM1.00 billion in 2020.
The dry rubber products sector includes tyres, industrial rubber goods, general rubber goods, and footwear.
MRC estimates the global demand for rubber gloves in volume terms to maintain a double-digit growth of between 12 per cent and 15 per cent in 2021.
Nurul Islam said the global per capita consumption of rubber gloves was expected to increase to 25 pairs in 2021 driven by higher usage of gloves in major Malaysia's export markets such as the United States and Europe as well as large emerging markets particularly in the Asian region.
"The country's rubber glove industry will maintain its positive momentum and exports are expected to reach a new high for the full year of 2021.
"Current initiatives are geared towards creating value for Malaysia's rubber industry to ensure it remains resilient, agile, competitive and sustainable.
"The intended outcome is to elevate the industry up towards the global value chain in ensuring optimising potentials while enhancing the rubber industry to address bottlenecks and governance and reputational challenges," he said.
Nurul Islam said MRC would continue to play its role in its steering efforts that will enhance the competitiveness, capability and resiliency of the overall Malaysian rubber industry.
"Most importantly, we aspire to nurture a sustainable ecosystem in Malaysia where our players are able to prosper while remaining competitive in the face of global challenges," he added.