Chocolate is often considered a luxury item. Cadbury Malaysia is the leading player on the market, followed by local companies Upali and Chocolate Products Trading. The locally produced segment of the market is dominated by the Consolidated Foods Corporation and the Philippine Cocoa Corporation, which is owned by Nestl . However the chocolate volume has doubled between 1990 and 1996. It is followed by Kraft Jacobs Suchard, PT Ceres and PT Cipta Rasa Primatama.
Sugar confectionery accounts for three-quarters of the market in volume terms.
This is followed by chewing gum and then in third place by chocolate. Nestl 's subsidiary, Nutritional Products, leads the chocolate market. The Chocolate and Cocoa Association of Japan said that of around 2m tonnes of confectionery produced in Japan in 1997, chocolates only accounted for around 189,000 tonnes, while red bean cakes have the largest share at 376,000 tonnes. Vietnam Vietnam is the fastest growing confectionery market in the Asia Pacific region and the market value has more than trebled since 1993. Spencer, S.C., Barriers to Asian confectionery markets.