Asian rubber futures finished slightly weaker on Monday, weighed down by a decline in crude-oil prices and a stronger yen.
Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures continued their downward slide in the wake of lower crude-oil prices. Tocom rubber futures for May delivery closed 1.8 yen lower at Y166.1($1.37) a kilogram.
Slowing demand from top buyer China will "continue to worry investors," said a Tokyo-based analyst. Overall, the market will "remain fragile" due to global oversupply, he said.
However, a Singapore-based trader said rubber prices seemed to be holding up relatively well, likely because traders were wary of shorting rubber ahead of slowdown caused by Chinese New Year and wintering. Wintering, which occurs between mid-February and mid-April, is when rubber trees lose their leaves and latex production can fall by up to 75%.
The most active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for May delivery rose 120 yuan to finish at CNY10,180($1,576) a metric ton.
Asian Rubber Futures December 14 Change from previous close
Tocom May RSS3 Y166.1/kg Down Y1.8/kg
Shanghai May SCR5 CNY10,180/ton Up CNY120/ton
Thai Jul RSS3 THB48.80/kg Down THB0.20/kg
Sicom Jan RSS3 US 126.2 cents/ton Down US 1.7 cents/ton
Sicom Feb TSR20 US 116.0 cents/ton Down US 0.5 cents/ton
Asian Physical Rubber
Grade Shipment Dec. 14 Dec. 11
RSS3 Jan/Feb 126-127 127-128
STR20 Jan/Feb 120-121 121-122
SIR20 Jan/Feb 117-118 117-118
SMR20 Jan/Feb 118-119 120-121
SVR3L Jan/Feb 120-121 120-121
USS Jan THB38.59-THB38.83/Kg THB38.60-THB39.02/Kg
