Cambodia exported more than 100,000 tonnes of natural rubber latex in the first five months of 2022, an increase of three per cent year-on-year, amid a four per cent drop in the wholesale going-rate for the milky-white exudate at top-quality, according to the General Directorate of Rubber.

The department – under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries – reported that in January-May, the export of latex reached 105,048 tonnes, up three per cent year-on-year, while commercial shipments of rubber wood stood at 13,026 cubic metres.

Revenue from exports clocked in at $168,468,640 for latex and $1,813,391 for rubber wood.

Directorate head Him Aun affirmed that as of May, the average wholesale selling price of first-rate latex was $1,604 per tonne, down by $71 per tonne or four per cent year-on-year.

“In May, the average price of natural rubber showed a decline in the international market compared to April.

“For Cambodia, the rubber market is dependent on the international market, as almost 100 per cent of exports are down – first, the fear of inflation; second, raising interest rates in the US; and third, the depreciation of the currency in major rubber exporting countries and the continued lockdown of parts of China,” he said, also attributing the drop to the Russia-Ukraine conflict and other global economic factors.

But, offering a silver lining, Aun pointed out that the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC) has recently approved a number of car tyre manufacturing projects and other investment ventures, which he said would demand large amounts of rubber, and potentially stabilise the prices and markets of the commodity.

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Author: Hom Phanet

Source: The Phnom Penh Post

Publication date: 12 June 2022