As a main exporter of gloves globally, Malaysia is handling suitably geopolitical pressures and sustainability demands and has its sights set on new directions in markets and technologies, according to Angelica Buan in this report.
Malaysia has moored itself as a major hub and exporter of rubber gloves in the Asian region and globally, with large manufacturers including Top Glove, Hartalega, Supermax, Kossan Rubber, YTY, Ansell, Sempermed and more, as well as an established production base serving buyers in major markets.
The Malaysian Rubber Glove Manufacturers Association (MARGMA) pegs the country’s global market share at about 45% in 2024, ahead of China at around 28%.
Other industry data puts Malaysia’s share of global rubber-glove exports by quantity at about 60%, although that figure comes from historical data and uses a different measure.
The industry’s importance to Malaysia’s rubber trade remains clear: from January-June 2026, the country recorded RM11 billion in rubber exports, with gloves accounting for more than RM7 billion, or about 66% of the total. The US was the largest destination, followed by the European Union, Japan, China and Singapore.
The country’s position in the global glove market is therefore well established.
But the industry now faces a different test. The US-Iran conflict and the resulting closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a major route for global oil trade, have disrupted energy and petrochemical supplies, with knock-on effects on rawmaterial availability, production costs and other parts of the business.
These pressures raise a broader question: how resilient is Malaysia’s glove industry when external shocks test its spot in the global market?
Hormuz impact on the gloves sector
The closure of Gulf’s Strait of Hormuz has created a mixed scenario for Malaysia’s rubber glove industry. According to Malaysia-based Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB), disruptions to naphtha supplies from the Middle East could reduce global nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) availability by as much as 24%.
HLIB analyst Chee Kok Siang said the disruption could temporarily benefit glove makers by easing the industry’s structural oversupply. A prolonged shut down of this key chokepoint could also give manufacturers more room to adjust average selling prices, potentially outweighing oversupply concerns in the near term.
The same supply disruption, however, has brought serious cost constraints for some manufacturers. One of these is Malaysian glove maker WRP Asia Pacific that had been forced to begin winding down its operations this year, while seeking potential buyers for the company.
Meanwhile, MARGMA had warned that the Hormuz blockade was causing shortages of key raw materials like NBR and nudged the government to provide temporary relief measures.
MARGMA President Oon Kim Hung said temporary relief was needed to help manufacturers manage the external supply shock, maintain production and fulfil commitments to hospitals and healthcare distributors worldwide. He also cautioned against a prolonged disruption could affect global healthcare supplies and Malaysia’s standing as a reliable supplier of medical protective equipment.
Meanwhile, Top Glove has also reported higher input costs by more than 50%, resulting in higher glove prices, and the company encouraged customers to consider natural rubber gloves since NBR pricing has been affected.
Buffering growth with Investments
While Malaysia’s glove industry faces slower conditions amid global political and economic uncertainty, major players continue to invest, expand and look for new sources of growth.
Kossan is acquiring full ownership of Singapore-based Inout Enterprise and a 51% stake in its Thailand associate for RM48 million to expand its Cleanroom Division and cleanroom distribution business. The deals, funded internally, are expected to be completed in Q1 2027.
Supermax, another leading homegrown glove maker, and its associate company, Supermax Brasil, are investing US$50 million to establish a medical-glove manufacturing facility in Paraná, Brazil. The project will give Supermax its first manufacturing base in South America and strengthen its presence in Brazil and the wider Mercosur market, a regional trade bloc in South America.
The plan comes as Brazil introduces import duties on medical gloves after removing previous anti-dumping measures. Supermax sees opportunities in the country’s growing healthcare sector, regional demand for medical and industrial gloves, Mercosur access and government efforts to encourage local manufacturing.
The facility will have an estimated production capacity of 2.4 billion gloves/year, with production lines installed in phases, and will produce both natural-rubber latex and nitrile examination gloves for the Brazilian and regional markets.
Supermax is also expanding its manufacturing base in the US, to reduce exposure to international freight and cross-border logistics volatility. Following the completion, testing and commissioning of its final production lines in June 2026, installation and pre-operating costs are expected to decline. From the second half of 2026, the plant is expected to take on larger orders from US domestic customers.
Dipping into more advanced applications
Manufacturers are also working on products aimed at more specialised applications. In October 2025, Malaysian glove maker Nastah Industries unveiled electrostatic discharge (ESD) chemical gloves incorporating Tuball graphene nanotubes supplied by Luxemburgheadquartered manufacturer of graphene nanotubes and nanotube products OCSiAl.
According to Nastah and OCSiAl, the nanotubes provide a conductive network within the glove, allowing it to combine static-discharge protection with resistance to abrasion, chemicals and tearing. Nastah said its 15,000-sq-m facility in Penang produces more than 30 million pairs of gloves/year. The gloves are certified under EN 16350, EN 374 and EN 388 and are intended for industries such as chemical processing and electronics manufacturing.
Research collaboration is also taking place between manufacturers and academic institutions. For instance, the Malaysian Rubber Council (MRC) facilitated an engagement between Seremban-based glove maker Avecena Gloves and Monash University researchers to discuss possible collaboration in rubber technology.
Charting a sustainable path for rubber gloves
Waste is another concern the glove industry, as a whole, cannot ignore, particularly because used rubber gloves are difficult to recycle through conventional waste systems.
A development has taken form along the material line, from UK-headquartered chemicals company Synthomer, which operates a facility in Pasir Gudang, Johor Bahru, that teamed up with Finnish renewable fuel producer Neste and Singaporebased chemicals company PCS to establish an ISCCcertified value chain for bio-based NBR latex.
According to the companies, the latex contains at least 20% bio-based feedstock while retaining the quality, safety and functional performance of its fossil-based equivalent. The ISCC Plus certification allows certified bio-based or circular feedstock to be incorporated into existing manufacturing systems and traced through the supply chain.
Elsewhere, novel initiatives are repurposing used gloves. Medical gloves manufacturer Sri Trang Gloves (Thailand), Thailand-based food and beverage group Oishi Group and Thaksin University launched the Sri Trang Green Steps project, which collects used rubber gloves from business operations and processes them into new products.
The university oversees the research, innovation and recycling process, which includes cleaning, sorting and recycling the gloves.
Researchers also developed a production formula designed to reduce chemical use while increasing the amount of reused rubber. The first project produced rubber floor mats for a 70-sq m indoor sports training field at Kanjandit School in Surat Thani Province. According to the organisations involved, the initiative also reduces industrial waste and greenhouse gas emissions linked to conventional disposal methods.
Similarly, Australia’s Ansell Ltd has launched TouchNTuff 93-800, a disposable chemical-protection glove offering at least 15 minutes of acetone resistance, which the company says is 15 times longer than standard nitrile disposable gloves. Designed for workers in aerospace, automotive, chemical manufacturing and maintenance, it reduces the need for frequent glove changes when handling strong solvents.
The TÜV certified glove, which contains more than 60% bio-based carbon uses Ansell’s Microchem Chemical Barrier Technology and a multi-layer construction of neoprene, nitrile and NR latex. It provides EN ISO 374-1 Type A chemical resistance, including against ketones and other harsh solvents, as well as EN388 2110A-certified abrasion and cut resistance. Its ergonomic design is intended to improve dexterity and reduce hand fatigue, while its high-visibility orange colour aids foreign-object detection.
For glove manufacturers, using such materials offers another way to reduce the carbon footprint of nitrile gloves while working towards more sustainable production.