KL RUBBER MARKET CLOSES MIXED AMID WEAKER REGIONAL FUTURES MARKETS

By Nur Athirah Mohd Shaharuddin

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 20 (Bernama) -- The Kuala Lumpur rubber market ended mixed on Monday amid a weaker showing in the regional rubber futures markets, said a dealer.

The dealer said Japanese rubber futures snapped a six-session rally on Friday, hit by seasonal demand worries and a firmer yen, although the market was set for its biggest weekly gain in more than two months on higher oil prices.

“Nevertheless, further losses were capped by encouraging United States (US) economic data, China's central bank’s latest move to prop up the economy amid positive developments surrounding the US-China trade front,” he told Bernama.

Citing the US Federal Reserve (Fed) on Friday, he said US manufacturing output surged in December 2024 as production at Boeing picked up following the end of a crippling strike by factory workers at the aerospace giant.

Additionally, the Fed stated that factory output increased by 0.6 per cent last month after a 0.4 per cent rebound in November 2024.

“It was reported that US President-elect Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed issues in a phone call on Friday, with both leaders upbeat, Trump calling it ‘a very good one’ and Xi saying he and Trump both hoped for a positive start to US-China relations,” he noted. 

The Malaysian Rubber Board reported that at 3pm the price of Standard Malaysian Rubber 20 (SMR 20) decreased by 5.0 sen to 879.50 sen per kilogramme (kg) while latex in bulk increased by 1.5 sen to  672.00 sen per kg.

-- BERNAMA