Kuala lumpur: Malaysia's natural rubber (NR) production saw a slight decrease of 0.4 per cent in January 2026, dropping to 28,579 tonnes from 28,684 tonnes in December 2025, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).
According to BERNAMA News Agency, NR exports experienced a significant increase, rising by 30.6 per cent to 41,983 tonnes in January 2026 from 32,139 tonnes in December 2025. The January 2026 Monthly Rubber Statistics highlighted a year-on-year production decline of 5.9 per cent compared to 30,357 tonnes in the same month of the previous year.
DOSM attributed most of January 2026's NR production to smallholders, contributing 87.6 per cent, while estates accounted for 12.4 per cent, as stated by chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin. The total stocks of NR increased by 9.3 per cent to 133,042 tonnes in January 2026 from 121,686 tonnes in December 2025. Rubber processors' factories held the majority of the stocks at 80.5 per cent, followed by rubber consumers' factories at 19.3 per cent, and rubber estates at 0.1 per cent.
In terms of exports, China continued to be the leading destination, receiving 40.3 per cent of Malaysia's NR exports in January 2026. Other significant importers included the United Arab Emirates (15.2 per cent), Germany (13.6 per cent), the United States (5.6 per cent), and Brazil (3.6 per cent). The export growth was driven by NR-based products such as rubber gloves, tyres, tubes, and rubber threads. Rubber gloves remained the primary export, valued at RM1.2 billion in January 2026, though this marked a decrease of 8.5 per cent from December 2025's RM1.3 billion.
Price trends showed a marginal 0.01 per cent decrease in concentrated latex prices, while scrap prices rose by 4 per cent. Globally, the World Bank Commodity Price Data indicated a 5.9 per cent increase in the January price for Technically Specified Rubber (TSR) 20, reaching US$1.84 per kg from US$1.74 per kg, with the Singapore/Malaysia price also rising by 3.9 per cent to US$2.14 per kg.
The Malaysia Rubber Board Digest reported mixed but generally stable trends in the Kuala Lumpur rubber market for January 2026. Contributing factors included a tightening raw material supply due to wet weather, elevated regional rubber futures, and positive economic developments in the US and China. However, market gains were limited by concerns over US trade policies, geopolitical tensions, fluctuating crude oil prices, profit-taking in futures markets, and a stronger ringgit. Overall, the market remained stable, buoyed by supply constraints and supportive macroeconomic factors.