Highlights

• Rubber latex exports value goes up to US$666.25 million in 2024
   
• Average yearly rubber price marks a 47% YoY surge to US$1,971/mt
   
• Domestic tire firms consume 58,000 tons of rubber in 2024

Cambodia’s rubber sector experienced remarkable growth in 2024, with total export earnings from rubber latex and rubber wood surpassing US$671.78 million, a 36.48% or US$150 million increase compared to the previous year. The surge in revenue was driven largely by higher global rubber prices due to tight supply amid fairly good demand.

According to data from the General Department of Rubber (GDR) under the Cambodian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries, rubber latex exports alone generated US$666.25 million. The average international price for Cambodian rubber latex rose sharply to US$1,971 per tonne in 2024, marking a 47% increase—US$634 per tonne—over 2023 levels.

Production up but exports down because of domestic consumption

The GDR said a total of 338,000 tons of latex were shipped during 2024, down 30,048 tonnes, or 8.16% year-on-year. However, officials said this did not reflect on the production volume, which, in fact, increased year on year. Cambodia’s rubber production in 2024 touched 407,209 tons, up 15,410 tons or 3.93% YoY.

The nascent tire industry in Cambodia absorbed a significant amount of domestic rubber production, which was reflected in the dip in rubber exports.

“Three tire factories in Cambodia started tire production in 2024. They absorbed over 58,000 tons of domestic rubber, valued at approximately US$96.4 million,” an official source said.

The source said that this year, the volume consumed by the domestic tire factories will increase, impacting exports more. But this is expected to be a vexing proposition for the rubber producers with global rubber prices hovering high. Hence, they expect the domestic tire makers to offer them good prices, lest they channel their product to the export route.

Source: Helixtap Analytics and GDCE Cambodia
 

Three tire plants in full-fledged production

Cambodia currently has three full-fledged tire plants by Newbustar (Cambodia) Tire Co Ltd at Kratie, General Tires Technology (Cambodia) Co Ltd at Preah Sihanouk, and the third by Cart Tire Co Ltd at Svay Rieng province, all Chinese-owned firms.

Sailun, which controls Cart Tire, plans to double the Svay Rieng capacity, while General Tires will invest US$214 million for expansion.  Cart Tire Co. Ltd., will spend US$61.18 million to increase production at Svey Rieng and will pump US$32.30 million as extra working capital, Sailun said in a filing with the Shanghai Stock Exchange recently.

“We are making a US$93.48 million investment to increase the production of all-steel radial tires (in Cambodia) to better meet customer needs in Cambodia and North America. The project is expected to achieve an average annual operating income of US$244.73 million,” Sailun said.

The expansion is to be completed by the end of this year. Cart Tire expects to take production from the initial 35,000 to 22 million tires, consuming 500 tons of rubber daily. The company expects its rubber consumption to be 30% of Cambodia’s rubber output.

Four more tire firms at various stages of establishing

Four more tire factory projects too are coming up in the country. They are by Chinese Wanli Tire, Shouguang Firemax, Zodo Tire in Sin Bavet city in Svay Rieng Province near the Vietnam border, and another by an undisclosed operator at UBE Snuol Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Snuol district in Kratie province at an investment of US$430 million.

In early January 2025, Guangzhou-based Wanli Tires did the groundbreaking ceremony for its Cambodia production base at Xin Bavet Special Economy Zone of Svay Rieng province. The base will have a production capacity of 10 million semi-steel radial tires and 1.2 million all-steel radial tires, marking the key first step in the global strategic layout of Wanli Tire.

 The first phase of Wanli Tire will produce 6 million semi-steel radial tires annually. This is Wanli Tire's first overseas project and the investment amount is around US$239 million and the total area of the plant is approximately 32 hectares.

Cambodian DPM feels more Chinese firms are on the way

Mr. Sun Chanthol, the Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister, who attended the groundbreaking ceremony, congratulated Wanli Tire on successfully establishing its first overseas factory in Cambodia. He pointed out that under the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative, the relations between Cambodia and China are close and friendly, and various large-scale investment projects are emerging. He said he believed that more large-scale Chinese enterprises would be attracted to invest and do business in Cambodia under the current circumstances.

Announced last year, the Zodo Tire plant aims to produce 6 million passenger car tires and 1.2 million truck and bus radial tires annually. The project is expected to employ nearly 1,500 people and involves an investment exceeding US$255 million. Shouguang Firemax’s US$190 million plant in Cambodia is slated to produce 8 million passenger car radial tires and 1.2 million truck and bus radial tires annually.

Experts say that the higher global prices and the emergence of more tire firms under Chinese patronage in Cambodia will boost investment in rubber plantations in the country. Already, the area of rubber plantations in the country has increased from 407,170 hectares in 2023 to 425,440 hectares in 2024. A total of 77% of this area is tappable, while the rest is fledgling or under maintenance. Smallholders hold 47.5% of the total plantations, while estates hold 52.5%.

Cambodia now has 179 rubber processing factories catering to the tire and non-tire industries. Of these, 56 are rubber processing factories, one is a rubber water processing factory, 101 are rubber sheet processing factories, and 21 are rubber wood processing factories.