The Malaysian rubber market rebounded to close higher today following the weakening ringgit and uptrend in the regional futures market.
A dealer said rubber prices on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) also rebounded today helped by the yen's fall against the US dollar.
Worries over supply shortage began to set in as rubber farmers in the two biggest rubber-producing nations, Thailand and Indonesia, held back stock this week as prices fell close to five-year lows, he said.
"Many producers in Thailand are pressing their government to shore up prices while those in Indonesia cut back on work shifts, both of which brought some support to the market," he told Bernama.
At the close, the Malaysian Rubber Board's official physical price for tyre-grade SMR 20 rose 2.5 sen to 495 sen a kg, while latex-in-bulk remained unchanged at 350 sen a kg. The unofficial closing price for tyre-grade SMR 20 rose nine sen to 500 sen a kg, while latex-in-bulk increased half-a-sen to 350 sen a kg.
