Malaysia’s exports of rubber products reached RM21.7 billion in 2017, compared to RM18.2 billion in 2016. This is an increase of 19.2 %.
The Malaysian Rubber Export Promotion Council (MREPC) said the stellar growth was despite the strengthening ringgit against the US dollar, which translated into lower revenue in ringgit terms.
Meanwhile, the import of rubber products increased by 15.5 % year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM7.6 billion from RM6.6 billion previously, resulting in a trade surplus of RM14 billion for the year under review.
“In terms of contribution to overall exports, which totalled RM935.4 billion in 2017, the rubber products industry’s share remained at 2.3 %.
“Latex products continued to dominate the industry, accounting for 81 % of the total exports of rubber products. Exports of latex products surged by 19.2 % y-o-y to RM17.5 billion from RM14.6 billion,” it said.