Rubber fell as some investors sold the commodity used to make tires after prices touched the highest level since May 29 and as stockpiles in China, the biggest user, remained near the highest level in three years.
Rubber for delivery in January on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange fell as much as 1.7 percent to 260.8 yen a kilogram ($2,683 a metric ton) and was at 264.4 yen at 11:26 a.m. The most-active contract has lost 13 percent this year.
Natural-rubber inventories in China have climbed 20 percent to 118,188 tons this year, according to the Shanghai Futures Exchange.
“Some investors sold futures after the recent rally and bought from cheaper physical markets,” said Gu Jiong, an analyst at commodity broker Yutaka Shoji Co.
Rubber for delivery in January was little changed at 19,705 yuan ($3,219) a ton on the Shanghai Futures Exchange.
Thai rubber free-on-board gained 1.3 percent to 79.50 baht ($2.54) a kilogram on Aug. 9, according to the Rubber Research Institute of Thailand. Thai markets were closed for a holiday yesterday.
Source: Bloomberg
