TOKYO, Aug 2 (Reuters) – Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures on Wednesday dropped to a two-week low, extending declines into a second session, as the market came under pressure from weak oil prices and Shanghai futures.
Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, also came under pressure from weak rubber fundamentals, brokers said.
“There is no change in oversupply of rubber,” said a source with a Tokyo-based broker.
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for January delivery finished 3.9 yen lower at 201 yen ($1.82) per kg. Earlier in the session, it touched 202.3 yen, the lowest since July 19.
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for January delivery fell 105 yuan to finish at 15,235 yuan ($2,265) per tonne.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore’s SICOM exchange for September delivery last traded at 145.2 U.S. cents per kg, down 1.7 cents.
Oil prices fell 1 percent on Wednesday, with rising U.S. fuel inventories pulling U.S. crude back below $50 per barrel, while ongoing high OPEC supplies weighed on international prices.
($1 = 110.6800 yen)
$1 = 6.7249 Chinese yuan
(Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
