Kuala lumpur: The Kuala Lumpur rubber market ended higher on Tuesday, supported by gains in regional rubber futures following the resumption of trading in key buyer China after the Lunar New Year holidays, a trader said.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Japanese rubber futures rose for a fifth straight session on Tuesday, underpinned by firm physical prices as trading resumed in key buyer China. The trader mentioned that market sentiment was further bolstered by rising crude oil prices alongside China's latest stimulus measures.

Oil prices climbed near seven-month highs amid geopolitical risks and United States-Iran nuclear talks uncertainty, the trader said. At the time of writing, Brent crude oil price rose 0.06 per cent to US$71.53 a barrel. However, further gains were capped by uncertainty surrounding US trade tariffs and ongoing geopolitical tensions.

At 3 pm, the Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR) 20 price gained 16.5 sen to 787 sen per kilogramme (kg), while latex-in-bulk was up by five sen to 597 sen per kg.