KL Rubber Market Ends Mixed Amid Weaker Global EV Sales, Regional Peers

By Danni Haizal Danial Donald

KUALA LUMPUR, March 13 (Bernama) -- The Kuala Lumpur rubber market ended mixed on Friday amid a downtrend in its regional peers and declining global sales of electric vehicles (EVs), said a dealer.

He said losses were, however, capped by China's stimulus measures and concerns over tight rubber supply. 

“Japanese rubber futures slipped, following weaker Asian equities despite a softer yen and tighter synthetic rubber supply,” he told Bernama.

Quoting Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, the dealer said global EV registrations fell 11 per cent in February 2026, with China's sales dropping 32 per cent to under 500,000 vehicles.

“Chinese lenders plan to channel more funds to tech and innovation firms following Beijing's push to expand artificial intelligence across the economy and emerging sectors.

“In addition, butadiene rubber supply is expected to tighten due to the disruption in feedstock supplies from the Middle East, potentially increasing the demand for natural rubber,” he said.

At 3 pm, the price of Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR) 20 eased five sen to 785 sen per kilogramme (kg) while latex in bulk gained five sen to 665 sen per kg.

-- BERNAMA