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KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters): Malaysian glove maker Kossan Rubber Industries Bhd will see its production capacity reduced by nearly 25% for two weeks after 427 workers tested positive for Covid-19, according to media reports and analysts.
Kossan is the latest manufacturer of medical gloves in the Southeast Asian country hit by the pandemic in recent weeks.
Top Glove, the world’s largest glove manufacturer, became the site of Malaysia’s largest virus group after more than 5,000 workers were infected. Hartalega, a smaller rival, has also reported cases.
The latest outbreak was reported at one of Kossan’s six facilities after a total of 7,004 workers were examined, Kuala Lumpur-based Kenanga Research said in a note, citing a company briefing for investors and analysts. on Tuesday (December 15).
Since then, the factory has been closed for sanitation reasons, while the remaining 1,667 workers who tested negative are in quarantine, Kenanga and three other research houses said.
Confirming the reports, Kossan founder Lim Kuang Sia told The Edge Markets that the outbreak is likely to affect less than 2% of the group’s results.
“The impact on production is only two weeks (as of December 4),” Lim quoted the financial news site as saying.
Kossan representatives did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests by phone and email for comment.
Affin Hwang Capital said that Kossan had voluntarily shut down about 25% of its production capacity for two weeks after the outbreak, and that operations are expected to resume on December 20.
Kossan also planned to test 20 percent of his workers every two weeks as a precaution in the future, the research houses said. – Reuters
(Reporting by Rozanna Latiff Edited by Ed Davies)
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