Kuala lumpur: The Kuala Lumpur rubber market closed higher on Monday, supported by a weaker ringgit against the US dollar and firmer crude oil prices, a dealer said. She noted that buying interest from Chinese participants for January delivery, ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in February, also lent support.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, China's finance ministry announced on Sunday that fiscal policies will be more proactive next year, with a focus on domestic demand, technological innovation, and strengthening the social safety net. Oil prices rose on Monday as investors considered discussions between the US and Ukrainian presidents on a potential deal to end the war in Ukraine, alongside Middle East tensions that could disrupt supply.

At 4.54 pm, the ringgit weakened to 4.0570/0620 against the greenback, from 4.0470/0535 at Friday's close. Meanwhile, Brent crude was up 1.24 percent at US$61.39 a barrel at the time of writing.

However, gains were limited by weaker regional rubber futures, soft Chinese economic data, and plans by C´te d'Ivoire to expand rubber plantations, amid ongoing geopolitical tensions. At 3 pm, Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR) 20 rose 8.5 sen to 752.0 sen per kilogramme, while latex-in-bulk gained one sen to 575 sen per kilogramme.