Kuala lumpur: The Malaysian rubber market ended with mixed results today, influenced by softer regional rubber futures and fluctuating crude oil prices, as noted by a dealer.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the market sentiment saw some improvement due to positive developments in the global automotive industry, along with growing optimism regarding potential interest rate cuts in the United States. However, these gains were limited by weak Chinese economic data and rising trade tensions between the US and China.

The dealer highlighted that Japanese rubber futures experienced a slight decline due to the pressure of a stronger yen, despite robust demand from the Chinese automotive sector. Additionally, oil prices showed mixed movements after Donald Trump announced that India had pledged to stop purchasing oil from Russia. Nevertheless, India’s foreign ministry did not comment on Trump’s statement regarding India’s oil purchases from Russia.

As of 5.17 pm, Brent crude oil had increased by 0.65 percent to US$62.30 per barrel. Earlier, at 3 pm, the Malaysian Rubber Board reported that the price of Standard Malaysian Rubber 20 (SMR 20) rose by eight sen to 747.50 per kilogramme, while latex-in-bulk decreased slightly by 1.5 sen to 570 per kilogramme.