Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures ended 1% lower on Thursday as the market came under pressure from further losses in Shanghai futures, amid persistent
worries over rising inventories and slack demand in top consumer China.
Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, marked a 5.4% decline over the past three days. Shanghai futures
tumbled again on Thursday as the yuan, which stood close to a 5-1/2 year low, raised worries over higher import prices and slack demand.
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for December delivery finished 1.5 yen lower at 152.8 yen (US$1.52) per kg, after touching 149.7 yen, the lowest since June 27.
"The speculation on excess supply is brewing in Chinese domestic market," said a source with a Tokyo-based broker.
The dollar shed 0.4 percent to 100.95 yen, though it also remained above the previous session's low of 100.20, as well as its June 24 nadir of 99.000 hit after the UK's vote.
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for September delivery fell 465 yuan to finish at 10,985 yuan (US$1,643) per tonne.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore's SICOM exchange for August delivery last traded at 129.3 U.S. cents per kg, down 2.3 cents.
