Natural Rubber output falls in Malaysia

NR output falls in Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (Oct. 20, 2009)—Natural rubber production fell 27.8 percent in Malaysia in August from the same month a year earlier, along with a 17.2-percent decline in NR exports, according to a Malaysian government agency.
NR output fell to 74,769 metric ton in August, with the smallholding sector contributing 93.5 percent of that amount, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia. Products slumped 9.9 percent from July.
Exports declined to 14,240 tons compared to the same month in 2008, although that was an 11.1-percent rise from July 2009. The department said domestic consumption for August grew 1.3 percent from the year-ago month to 41,024 tons.