The rubber industry and Indian immigration
The rubber industry not only brought about a transformation of the agricultural economy in Malaya, but also led to a major demographic change in the population. From 1900 to 1920, the rush of planters, capitalists, adventurers and speculators to invest in rubber in the western Malay states established the Malay Peninsula as a primary producer of rubber. By the end of 1909, 399 estates had been planted with 200,000 hectares of rubber, overshadowing other commercial crops.
- Information in the full article includes
- Pre-1890s commercial agriculture
- The rise of the rubber industry
- Aid from the administration
- Critism of the labour system
