Lingering Omicron to drive global gloves demand short-term

Kuala Lumpur – The global rubber gloves demand is set to slow down from the ‘extraordinary’ levels of 2020 and 2021, but will remain considerably higher than pre-Covid levels, according to the Malaysian Rubber Glove Manufacturers Association (MARGMA).

The demand for gloves in 2022 and 2023 is estimated to be 10-15% higher than the pre-Covid 19 level of 296 billion pieces, said MARGMA president Dr Supramaniam Shanmugam in a 21 Feb statement to ERJ.

“For now, certainly, there will be a slight increase in demand for gloves, especially from Europe and America in view of the lingering Covid Omicron,” said Shanmugam. 

This, however, will be mitigated by higher than usual inventory levels in buyers’ premises, he added.

MARGMA had previously anticipated demand for gloves to reach 420 billion pieces in 2021, up from 360 billion pieces in 2020. 

As for the average selling price (ASP) of gloves, the association’s leader said he expected ASPs to normalise in the second quarter of 2022 to ‘pre-Covid level plus 12 to 16% increment’.

The increments, according to the official, are due to the inherent increase in raw materials and energy since 2019.