Malaysian rubber glove makers today said demand for natural latex gloves remained strong because of global concerns over bird flu and other life-threatening diseases.

President of the Malaysian Rubber Glove Manufacturers' Association, Oon Kim Hung, said global demand was growing 10 percent annually and current world usage was at some 120 billion pieces, Bernama news agency reported.

"(The) natural rubber latex glove has now become the essential item not only for the medical and dental industries, but also for many other industries such as food, household consumable products and those hygiene-related," he was quoted as saying.

Oon said Malaysia currently held over 60 percent of the market but expressed concerns about the recent volatility in natural rubber prices.

"We are not happy with current latex price volatility. We would like to see stability in the raw material price," he said.

Malaysia on Monday called for rubber prices to be stabilised after recent fluctuations.

Rubber prices have dropped in the last few months from a June high of RM8.52 per kilogram to RM6.49 in September.

Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia account for some 80 percent of the world's natural rubber output.