KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 12): Stocks of natural rubber rose 0.02% to 185,670 tonnes in August 2018 compared with 185,640 tonnes at the end of July, says the Statistics Department.
In a statement today, the department said Malaysia’s natural rubber exports grew 2.1% to 57,670 tonnes for the month under review, with China as the main destination (52.1%), followed by Germany (13%), Iran (5.5%), South Korea (3.3%) and Finland (3.1%).
“Domestic consumption of natural rubber in August 2018 declined 3.2% to 42,755 tonnes from 44,188 tonnes in July 2018.
“The rubber glove industry was the main user and accounted for 31,930 tonnes or 74.7% of the total natural rubber domestic consumption,” it said,
Meanwhile, Malaysia’s natural rubber production rose 11.4% in August to 62,862 tonnes versus 56,454 tonnes in July. Year-on-year production increased 2.9%.
Compared with July, the average price in August for Latex Concentrate decreased 2.0% to 406.95 sen per kilogramme while the average price for Standard Malaysian Rubber 20 (S.M.R. 20) increased 2.9% to 542.98 sen per kilogramme.
Source: The Edge Markets