KUALA LUMPUR: The Kuala Lumpur rubber market ended mixed on Wednesday, supported by gains in regional futures markets and a weaker ringgit against the US dollar, a dealer said. She noted that market sentiment was also boosted by strong United States (US) economic data as market traders are monitoring the US election results. Nevertheless, further gains were capped by losses in crude oil prices.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the Japanese rubber futures rose for the second consecutive session on Wednesday, reaching their highest level in a week. This was supported by stronger economic data from top consumer China and a weaker yen. Oil prices saw a decline on Wednesday after industry data indicated a bigger-than-expected build in US inventories, while attention remained on potential supply disruptions due to the hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico. Data from the American Petroleum Institute revealed that US oil inventories surpassed expectations, increasing by about 3.1 million barrels in the week to November 1
, 2024.

At 5 pm, Brent crude oil prices fell 1.75 per cent to US$74.23 per barrel. The US services sector activities showed unexpected acceleration in October, reaching a more than two-year high, with strengthened employment. This provided more evidence that the economy is in solid shape as the nation heads to the polls for the presidential election. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reported that its non-manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) rose to 56.0 last month from 54.9 in September.

The Malaysian Rubber Board reported that the price of Standard Malaysian Rubber 20 (SMR 20) rose by 1.5 sen to 871 sen per kilogramme (kg), while latex in bulk fell by eight sen to 694 per kg. At 5 pm, SMR 20 stood at 873.5 sen per kg, while latex in bulk was at 687 sen per kg.