Rubber Market Ends Lower Amid Mixed Regional Futures

By Nur Athirah Mohd Shaharuddin

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 24 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian rubber market ended lower today, tracking the mixed performance across regional rubber futures, a dealer said.

She said the market sentiment was further dented by losses in the United States economy due to the prolonged government shutdown.

“Nevertheless, further losses were capped by gains in crude oil prices, concerns of rubber supply from heavy rains in major natural rubber-producing countries, and the introduction of incentives to purchase electric vehicles (EVs) in the United Kingdom.

“Britain’s government is expected to introduce a 1.5-billion-pound (RM8.3 billion) package to accelerate a switch to EVs,” she told Bernama.

The dealer also said that the Thai Meteorological Department has forecast persistent heavy rain across Southern Thailand today, with 70 per cent coverage, especially in the lower South. 

At 3 pm, the Malaysian Rubber Board (MRB) reported that the price of Standard Malaysian Rubber 20 (SMR 20) was down by 3.0 sen to 727.50 sen per kilogramme (kg), while latex-in-bulk inched down by one sen to 576.0 sen per kg.

-- BERNAMA