Malaysia retains slight edge in rubber glove industry despite tariff, Dewan told

Malaysia retains slight edge in rubber glove industry despite tariff, Dewan told

Plantation and commodities minister Johari Ghani says China was slapped with a 55% tariff compared to Malaysia's 19%.

Plantation and commodities minister Johari Ghani said Malaysia is the leading producer of rubber gloves, with a market share of about 40%. (Bernama pic)
KUALA LUMPUR:
Malaysia still has a slight edge as a supplier of rubber gloves despite the 19% reciprocal tariff imposed by the US government, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.

Plantation and commodities minister Johari Ghani said the rate was similar to that of the tariff imposed on Thailand.

China, on the other hand, was slapped with a 55% tariff, he said.

“We continue to remain the destination of choice due to the quality (of rubber gloves we produce),” Johari said in wrapping up the debate on the 13th Malaysia Plan.

“In this context, we have a slight edge compared to two of our main competitors,” he added.

Based on data from May, he said the US remained a major market, taking about 46% of Malaysia’s total rubber glove exports compared to 40% last year.

He said Malaysia was the leading producer of rubber gloves, with a market share of about 40%.

In February, the Malaysian Rubber Glove Manufacturers Association said China had a 28% market share in 2024 compared to Malaysia’s 45%.

Johari also said that between January and May this year, the export value of Malaysia’s rubber gloves hit RM6 billion.

For the whole of last year, export value stood at RM15.4 billion.

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