The Malaysian rubber market extended its losses today to close lower in quiet trading due to the strengthening of the local currency, a dealer said.
He said the easier local market was in line with the similar sentiments on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE).
Meanwhile, he said, a government survey showed that growth in China’s services sector fell to a four-month low in December as business expectations dropped, adding to evidence that the world’s second-largest economy has lost steam toward end-2013.
At noon, the Malaysian Rubber Board’s official physical price for tyre-grade SMR 20 fell 10.5 sen to 723 sen a kg and latex-in-bulk eased 13.5 sen to 504 sen a kg.
The unofficial closing price for tyre-grade SMR 20 fell 9.5 sen to 718.5 sen a kg while latex-in-bulk also shed 11 sen to 500 sen a kg.– Bernama
