Natural rubber (NR) exports in August 2014 fell by 9,644 tonnes or 16 per cent to 50,467 tonnes, as compared to the previous month, said the Statistics Department. In a statement this week, the department said compared with August last year, the exports showed a drop of 28.0 per cent. It said Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR) contributed 93.6 per cent of the total exports, with 47.4 per cent comprising SMR 20. "NR was exported mainly to China (37.2 per cent), followed by Germany (18.8 per cent), the USA (5.7 per cent), Iran (4.8 per cent) South Korea (3.6 per cent), Portugal (3.0 per cent), Brazil (2.3 per cent), Finland (2.0 per cent) and Turkey (2.0 per cent). NR imports in August 2014 fell 4,166 tonnes, or 2.4 per cent, from July 2014, to 78,412 tonnes. Compared with August 2013, imports fell by 8,928 tonnes, or 10.2 per cent. The department said production for the month under review totalled 50,467 tonnes, down 28 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y), with the smallholding sector at 89.5 per cent, while the estate sector contributed 10.5 per cent. Total NR for domestic consumption in August rose by 10.5 per cent to 40,251 tonnes, with the rubber gloves industry being the largest consuming sector at 69.7 per cent, followed by tyre and tubes (6.5 per cent) and rubber thread (9.9 per cent). The country's NR stocks stood at 141,438 tonnes as at end-August 2014, down 3.1 per cent compared with the previous month. The average monthly price of latex concentrate in May 2014 was 426.69 sen, a 6.0 per cent fall from the previous month and a 19.0 per cent fall y-o-y. Productivity for the month under review was recorded at 130.1 kg per ha, down by 0.5 per cent from the previous month and 8.8 per cent y-o-y.

Source: rubberworld.com