Cambodia rubber exports dip for 2022

Phnom Penh, Cambodia – Cambodia’s General Directorate of Rubber (GDR), under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, announced that Cambodia netted more than $453 million from the export of rubber latex and wood in the first 11 months of 2022, marking a slight year-on-year dip that has been blamed on diminished global demand and production chain disruption across the world tied to the Covid-19 crisis.

In the January-November period, Cambodia produced 317,282 tons of rubber latex, up 173 per cent or 0.05 per cent year-on-year, of which 311,286 tons or 98.11 per cent were exported – 2,161 tons or 0.69 per cent fewer than in the year-ago period.

The average selling price of latex for the 11-month period was to the tune of $1,444 per ton, down $220 or 13.2 per cent from the same time last year, the report noted.

GDR head Him Aun confirmed that Cambodia’s January-November rubber latex and wood exports earned total revenue of more than $453 million, with latex and wood representing $449 million and $3.8 million, respectively.

“From a short-term market perspective, demand conditions could have an impact on recovery. By the end of the year, global rubber production is expected to outpace demand – it could make the rubber market environment unhealthy,” he said.

According to the GDR, as of 2021, Cambodia had 404,044ha dedicated to rubber production, with 310,193ha or 76.77 per cent mature and tapped for latex, which yielded 368,000 tons last year, or an average of just below 1,200kg per hectare. According to Aun, the area under rubber cultivation has not seen significant changes in the past “two or three years”.