RUBBER MARKET ENDS LOWER ON WEAKER REGIONAL FUTURES, FALLING OIL PRICES

By K. Naveen Prabu

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 27 (Bernama) -- The Kuala Lumpur rubber market ended lower today, tracking the downward movement in regional rubber futures and benchmark crude oil, said a dealer.

According to the dealer, Japanese rubber futures slipped as the yen stayed firm. On the decline in oil prices, the dealer said prices fell on expectations of resumed supply from Kazakhstan.

At the time of writing, Brent crude oil was down 0.67 per cent to US$65.15 a barrel.

The dealer said the heightened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East weighed further on market sentiments.  “Heightened geopolitical tensions involving Iran and the Middle East, as US ships arrived in the region, kept global markets on edge,” he told Bernama. 

However, he said concerns over raw material shortage in major producing countries capped further losses. “Reports indicate that rubber harvesting in northern Thailand and Vietnam is slowing, keeping prices supported ahead of the peak season,” he said, adding that further declines were also limited by encouraging global automobile sales.

“European Union car sales extended their recovery in December, with fully electric vehicles overtaking petrol for the first time, as electrified models accounted for a record 67 per cent of registrations,” he noted. 

At 3 pm, Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR) 20 dropped 4.5 sen to 744.00 sen per kilogramme (kg), while latex-in-bulk dipped one sen to 575.00 sen per kg.

-- BERNAMA