Rubber Market Ends Higher

By Durratul Ain Ahmad Fuad

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 9 (Bernama) -- The Kuala Lumpur rubber market ended higher today, taking its cue from the recovery in benchmark crude oil prices and the uptick in the Shanghai rubber futures exchange, amid concerns over tight natural rubber supply due to adverse weather in producing countries, a dealer said. 

He said China's encouraging auto sales data and anticipation for the United States (US) interest rate cuts lifted the market sentiment.

“Nevertheless, further gains were capped as the ringgit strengthened against the US dollar,” he told Bernama. 

He said Japanese rubber futures recovered on Wednesday, buoyed by concerns of wet weather disrupting supply globally, although fading enthusiasm from top consumer China's stimulus measures and lower oil prices capped gains.

The dealer said oil prices inched higher on Wednesday, recouping some of the prior session's steep losses, although signs of a large increase in US inventories limited gains.

Meanwhile, the dealer highlighted reports that China's major electric vehicle makers saw strong sales during the past National Day ‘golden week’ holiday, as the country's economic stimulus measures fueled optimism and the auto market entered its strong season.

The Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB) reported that the price of Standard Malaysian Rubber 20 (SMR 20) rose by 11.0 sen to 897.0 sen per kilogramme (kg), while latex-in-bulk was up by 2.0 sen to 751.5 sen per kg.

At 5 pm, SMR 20 stood at 883 sen per kg, while latex-in-bulk reached 750 sen per kg.

-- BERNAMA