Growth in global rubber glove demand to stay at 8%-10% in 2017
Total export revenue of rubber gloves is projected to be at RM15.2bil next year.
KUALA LUMPUR: The growth in global demand for rubber gloves is expected to be maintained at 8% to 10% in 2017, says the Malaysian Rubber Glove Manufacturers Association (Margma).
In a statement on Thursday, Margma said it expected the total export revenue of rubber gloves for 2017 to be at RM15.2bil, while the projected total export revenue for 2016 to be at RM14.3bil.
President Denis Low Jau Foo said the January-September 2016 statistics indicated that the total export revenue for rubber gloves would reach RM13.8bil.
He said the lower projection was due to shortage of foreign workers to run production lines since February 2016 and shutdowns due to water shortage in the past few months.
On the current market situation, Low said it was necessary to cut costs all round to stave off competitions from abroad.
As such, Margma lauds the stance taken by the Energy Commission and Gas Malaysia Bhd in reducing the natural gas tariff effective from Jan 1 to June 30, 2017.
“The 1.3% decrease in natural gas tariff is a welcome relief for rubber glove manufacturers,” said Low.
He said the natural gas tariff increased 17.2% on Jan 1, 2016 and had a 6% increase on July 15, 2016.
Both the increases had brought the Malaysian natural gas price at world market level.
Margma, established in 1989, is a non-profit industry association that extends a range of services to supporting organisations. – Bernama
