A worker harvests rubber sheets at a plantation in Tbong Khmum Province in 2024. Niem Chheng
Cambodia earned over $671 million from rubber latex and rubber tree exports in 2024, marking a jump of over 36 per cent compared to 2023. The price of rubber also saw a major increase.
According to a report from the General Department of Rubber under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries, the total revenue from exporting rubber latex and rubber tree reached $671.68 million, an increase of 36.48 per cent. Rubber latex earned $666.25 million, while rubber trees worth $5.4 million were sent to international markets.
The average price of rubber latex on the international market in 2024 was $1,971 per tonne, an increase of $634 per tonne, or 47 per cent, over the previous year.
The report detailed that 338,000 tonnes of latex were exported, a decrease of 30,048 tonnes, or 8.16 per cent. Meanwhile, 25,157 cubic metres of rubber trees were exported.
Khun Kakada, acting director-general of the rubber department, explained that although the volume of latex exported decreased slightly, the Kingdom’s actual rubber yield increased.
He added that the decrease in export volume was due to increased domestic demand from the growing number of tyre manufacturing factories in the kingdom.
Rubber production in 2024 was about 407,209 tonnes, an increase of 15,410 tonnes – or 3.93 per cent – over 2023.
“Three local factories began producing tyres in 2024. They utilised around 58,000 tonnes of domestic rubber as a raw material, or about 4,800 tonnes per day,” noted Kakada.
Lao Vichet, vice-president of the Cambodia-China Commerce Association (CCCA), told The Post that the international rubber latex market showed remarkable growth in 2024, which coincided with the rise in demand from local tyre factories.
He believed that if the number of tyre manufacturing factories continues to rise, the volume of Cambodia’s latex exports may continue to decline further.
“The presence of domestic tire factories was one of the reasons for the decline in exports. The growth in demand both in international markets and domestically will help boost investment in the development of rubber plantations in the future,” he added.
According to the rubber department, as of the end of 2024, Cambodia had a total of 425,443 hectares of rubber plantations, an increase from the 407,172 hectares reported in 2023.
Of them, 330,259 hectares were currently producing rubber, accounting for 77.63 per cent of the total plantation area, The remaining 95,184 hectares were under maintenance.
The area of industrial rubber plantations was 223,122 hectares, or 52.44 per cent, while the area of family-owned plantations was 202,321 hectares, or 47.56 per cent.
Currently, Cambodia is home to six tyre manufacturing factories, the majority of them built with Chinese investment. They are located in the special economic zones of Svay Rieng, Preah Sihanouk, and Kratie provinces.
To encourage investment and further exports, at the end of 2023, the government adjusted the export tax rate on rubber products for 2024-2025. This move aimed to support rubber plantation development and assist farmers and export companies who have faced years of declining rubber prices due to a drop in international demand.
