Malaysia's Commodity Exports Hit US$41.14 BLN In 2011, Says Minister

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 12 (Bernama) -- Malaysia's commodity exports in 2011 were estimated to reach RM130 billion (US$41.40 billion), Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Bernard Dompok said Thursday. (US$1=RM3.14) For the first 10 months, he said, it amounted to RM118.2 billion compared with RM113.3 billion in the corresponding period 2010. Palm oil exports for January to December last year totalled RM80.3 billion, he said. "However, there are issues and challenges confronting timber trade and the industry in Malaysia," he said at the Malaysian Timber Dialogue 2012 here. As of Oct 30, 2011, he said, exports of timber and timber products were RM16.5 billion, a decrease of 3.1 per cent compared to the corresponding period 2010. "The performance of the industry for the first 10 months of this year, if extrapolated for the whole year, would fall short of the RM30 billion projected under the National Timber Industry Policy (NATIP)," he said. To achieve the national target of RM53 billion in export earnings by 2020, Dompok said, the Malaysian timber industry needed to be innovative and create value addition in this sector. Meanwhile, on reports that Thailand, the largest rubber producer and exporter, had agreed to buy from suppliers at above market rates to boost local rubber prices and end protests from farmers, Dompok said discussions were ongoing with representatives from Thailand and Indonesia. -- BERNAMA