LONDON—Natural rubber prices remained weak in November, although a shortage of supply as a result of heavy rains was expected to push up the prices in global markets.
An ERJ analysis of Far East markets showed little change between closing prices during November, despite some signs of recovery at the beginning of the month.
On the Shanghai Futures Exchange, prices for RU1801, the most heavily traded NR future, stood at about $2,042 per ton on Nov. 30.
The futures price was just slightly little below the $2,056 per ton recorded for RU1801 trades at the beginning of the month.
There were, though, some significant price movements during the month. Prices for the SHFE rubber future fell to $2,007 per ton on Nov. 16, before recovering to start-of-month levels.
Similarly, on Japan’s TOCOM exchange, back-month prices for RSS3 materials continued to remain flat at $1.77 per kilogram on Nov. 30.
While a small pick-up was observed in Tokyo during the second week of November, prices hovered around the $1.69 per kilogram mark during the month of November.
In Bangkok, spot prices for RSS1 grades on Nov. 30 stood at $160.4 per 100 kilograms, down 1 percent compared to the end of October.
RSS3 performed slightly weaker on the Thai exchange, posting a 5 percent decline at $156.9 per 100 kilograms, compared to $164.80 per 100 kilograms on Oct. 31.
In Kuala Lumpur, prices for SMR-20 inched 1 percent up, at $139.70 per 100 kilograms at the end of November, compared to $137.65 per 100 kilograms at the end of October.
Malaysian SMR-20 prices did rally up to $145.30 per 100 kilograms in the first week of the month, before tracking downward.
Latex performed better in Kuala Lumpur, closing nearly 7 percent up at $118.90 per 100 kilograms on Nov. 30, compared to $111.25 per 100 kilograms at the end of October.
