Malaysia says palm oil industry faces $2.4 bln annual loss due to labour crunch

Workers stand near palm oil fruits inside a palm oil factory in Sepang, outside Kuala Lumpur, February 18, 2014. REUTERS/Samsul Said

KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 (Reuters) - Malaysia, the world second-largest palm oil producer, is facing a labour shortfall of around 32,000 people due to corononavirus restrictions, the country's commodities minister said on Thursday.

"The labour shortage issue is estimated to cause around 10 billion ringgit ($2.41 billion) in losses anually due to unharvested ripe palm oil fruits," Minister Mohd Khairuddin bin Aman Razali said at a conference.

($1 = 4.1530 ringgit)

Reporting by Mei Mei Chu Editing by Ed Davies

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