Malaysia can become the world's number one rubber producer again with efforts made by the government, industry executives say (Business Times).  Malaysia was the world's top producer until 1987 when Thailand took over the mantle, while another neighbour Indonesia sneaked in at number two.

"We hope that with the government's intentions of opening up land space in Sabah and Sarawak, it can bring back the glory days when Malaysia was the number one rubber producer in the world," Malaysian Rubber Products Manufacturers Association executive director Kong Ping Yee said.  Kong spoke to reporters after the launch of the 5th International Plastics and Rubber Trade Fair for Malaysia (M-PLAS 2011) here yesterday.

He said local rubber production dropped in the late 1980s after many companies decided to plant oil palml as the prices for the commodity was far better than that of rubber.  "But with Sabah and Sarawak opening up, I am sure we can regain that number one spot again," he said.

Kong said Malaysia was now producing one million tonnes of rubber a year, in comparison with Thailand, of which output stands at 3.5 million tonnes a year.  "Thailand and Indonesia also have land problems, so their production is not increasing. For Indonesia, most of the players there are Malaysian companies," he said.

As for the plastic industry, Malaysian Plastics Manufacturers Association's Lim Kok Boon noted that it had recorded a sales value of RM15.8 billion for 2010, an increase of 8.2 per cent compared with RM14.6billion in 2009.  Export sales increased by 14.5 per cent from RM8.2 billion in 2009 to RM9.4 billion in 2010.

Ministry of International Trade and Industry Datuk Jacob Dungau Sagan, who officiated at the launch, said the exhibition underlines the importance of Malaysia as a key plastics and rubber manufacturing destination.  Themed "Shaping Your Business", M-PLAS 2011 showcases a range of innovative solutions for the plastics and rubber industries from 174 exhibitors of 19 countries such as Austria, China, India, Italy and Singapore.