Source: tapchicaosu.vn
Cambodian farmers harvest rubber latex
The country earns 919 million USD from exporting rubber and rubber products in 2023, recording a growth of 69.6% over the previous year.
Amid falling global demand, Cambodia earned $121 million from exporting rubber products in the first month of this year, up 123.5% over the same period last year, according to the latest trade data from the Ministry of Industry and Trade. General Department of Customs. Data indicates that the trend of increasing Cambodian rubber exports starting in the second half of 2022 continued throughout last year and lasted until January this year. The Cambodian rubber market mainly includes China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, India and the EU.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, in 2021, Cambodia will have more than 400,000 hectares of rubber plantations. Cambodia also has 168 rubber processing factories and handicraft centers in 11 provinces. According to ANRPC data, Kampong Thom is the leading rubber producing province in Cambodia with 15.4 cultivation areas, followed by Mondulkiri (8.4%) and Stung Treng (4.2%).
While the Kingdom exported almost all of its natural rubber a few years ago, the launch of several tire plants, especially by Chinese companies last year, has led to Higher domestic demand for Cambodian rubber. Manufacturers in China, the world’s largest tire producer and exporter, began building more factories abroad to meet recovering market demand after the country reopened after consequences of Covid-19.
China’s annual tire output accounts for more than half of the global total. But recently, many businesses have started building factories abroad, especially in Cambodia, a major rubber producing country, to take advantage of low production costs.
One of the first companies to launch in the UK, General Tire Technology (Cambodia) began operations at its $300 million Cambodian factory in the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone (SSEZ) a week ago. The factory is capable of producing 5 million semi-steel radial tires and 900,000 all-steel radial tires per year. The factory, located in Cambodia’s coastal province of Preah Sihanouk, is a subsidiary of a Chinese tire manufacturer from Jiangsu called General Science Technology. Tires produced at the factory are mainly exported to the US, Europe, and Brazil.
China’s Doublestar Tire Company also started construction of a $200 million factory in the Kratie Special Economic Zone with an annual production capacity of 8.5 million radial tires. Recently, Cart Tire Co Ltd, China’s largest modern tire manufacturer operating on behalf of Sailun Group, launched the first car tire made in Cambodia called ‘Sailun’. According to company sources, the factory in Svay Rieng province can produce up to 35,000 tires per day in the first phase. They are also planning to build two more factories in Cambodia.
Meanwhile, according to the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, global natural rubber production increased by 9.1% in December last year, reaching 1.5 million. ton. Heng Guan, Secretary General of ANRPC, said demand for natural rubber has decreased by 3.2%, reaching a total of 1.2 million tons. He pointed out that this dynamic has led to diversified performance across key rubber markets.
Thailand was the largest producer of natural rubber last year, followed by Indonesia, Vietnam, China, India, Malaysia and Cambodia. China continues to be the largest consumer of natural rubber, followed by India, Thailand and Malaysia. In 2023, the global natural rubber market is predicted to reach 14.69 million tons while consumption is expected to be 14.738 million tons.
According to experts, the natural rubber market continues to face major economic obstacles, especially due to the weaker-than-expected growth rate of the Chinese economy in the second quarter of this year. China is the world’s largest tire producer. Add to this the effects of the prolonged Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas wars and high borrowing costs due to rising interest rates.
