KUALA LUMPUR — The Malaysian rubber market is expected to trade higher next week in line with the anticipated better performance on the regional rubber futures markets, a dealer said.
The commodity’s price is also likely to be boosted by the crude oil price movement and the ringgit performance, which is expected to weaken further, he added.
“Good news coming from Thailand will also provide a fillip to the local rubber market next week.
“The Thai government will pay planters to stop planting rubber in an effort to raise prices and this positive momentum will spillover to the local market,” he added.
However, the escalating trade tensions between the US and China would negatively impact on the rubber market.
MARKET PERFORMANCE
For the week just-ended, rubber prices were traded mostly higher, taking the cue from external factors, including the regional markets performance, as well as the crude oil price and ringgit movements.
On a Friday-to-Friday basis, the Malaysian Rubber Board’s noon price for tyre-grade SMR 20 rose 16.5 sen to 545.5 sen a kg, while latex-in-bulk remained at last week’s 408.0 sen a kg.
The 5 pm unofficial closing price for SMR 20 gained 11.5 sen to 542 sen a kg, while latex-in-bulk stood at last week’s 409.0 sen a kg.
