MARKET COMMENTARY
A mixed trend is being witnessed in the major overseas natural rubber market as this week’s session commences. TOCOM rubber futures inched up to hit a one week high, while SHFE rubber futures ticked down. Japanese yen loosing strength against the dollar following upbeat economic indicators from the US lifted rubber prices on TOCOM. However, weak trade data from China, releases earlier today, weighed on.
In the Indian market last week, RSS4 grade rubber was held in tight ranges. Quotes for the grade in the physical market hovered around Rs.144 a kg. Thinning supplies to the market lend firm support to the prices though weak cues from the overseas market weighed on, capping advances.
MARKET NEWS
Rubber imports (both natural and synthetic) by China in the month of July rose 4.2 per cent to 430000 tonnes.
The Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries expects the demand for natural rubber to stay weak in 2016 as well as 2017. According to the association natural rubber production among its member countries for the first seven months of 2016 stood at 5.899 million tonnes, up by 0.2 per cent on YoY basis, while consumption rose 4.4 per cent to 4.7 million tonnes.
The National Mutli-Commodity Exchange said it will impose 20% additional cash margin on August rubber contract on both buy and sell positions from August 8th.
China imported 2.69 million tons of natural and synthetic rubber worth 24.7 billion yuan (approx US$3.72 billion) during the first half of this year, a year-over-year increase of 38.4 per cent and 16.9 per cent, respectively. The country imported 410,000 tons of natural and synthetic rubber worth 4.18 billion yuan (approx US$630 million) in June of this year, up 24.2 per cent and 15.3 per cent from a year earlier, respectively.
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Geofin Comtrade
