Rubber dropped for a second day as rising stockpiles in China and Japan signaled slow demand for the commodity used in tires.
Futures for delivery in May on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange fell as much as 0.7 percent to 279.2 yen a kilogram ($2,710 a metric ton) before trading at 280 yen at 11:39 a.m. local time. Prices fell 7.4 percent this year.
TOCOM Rubber Futures Prices on Wednesday, December 18, 2013 (yen/kilogram)
|
Month |
Last Settlement Price |
Open |
High |
Low |
Current |
Change |
Volume |
|
Dec 2013 |
282.3 |
281.4 |
281.7 |
277.7 |
281.1 |
-1.2 |
11 |
|
Jan 2014 |
282.0 |
281.0 |
281.4 |
278.0 |
278.6 |
-3.4 |
166 |
|
Feb 2014 |
278.4 |
277.2 |
278.0 |
275.8 |
276.3 |
-2.1 |
187 |
|
Mar 2014 |
277.6 |
276.2 |
277.1 |
275.9 |
276.6 |
-1.0 |
312 |
|
Apr 2014 |
279.5 |
278.2 |
279.0 |
277.4 |
278.9 |
-0.6 |
740 |
|
May 2014 |
281.1 |
280.0 |
281.2 |
279.2 |
281.1 |
+0.0 |
6,380 |
|
Total |
|
7,796 |
|||||
Rubber inventories in Qingdao, China’s main hub for the commodity, advanced for a third week to 282,700 tons from 276,300 tons at the end of November, according to the Qingdao International Rubber Exchange. Crude rubber stockpiles held at Japanese warehouses rose 16.7 percent to 10,875 tons on Nov. 30, the highest level since July 10, according to data from the Rubber Trade Association of Japan.
“Stocks in Qingdao and Japan are at high levels, raising concerns the demand for rubber will slow ahead of holiday seasons,” said Megumi Saito, trader at commodity broker Yutaka Shoji Co. Some players have reduced positions while waiting for a Federal Reserve decision on its monthly stimulus program.
The Fed may begin cutting economic stimulus at its meeting today, according to 34 percent of economists in a Dec. 6 Bloomberg survey, up from 17 percent in a Nov. 8 poll.
The contract for May delivery on the Shanghai Futures Exchange dropped 0.6 percent to 19,300yuan ($3,179) a ton. Thai rubber free-on-board dropped 0.4 percent to 83.35 baht ($2.59) a kilogram yesterday, according to the Rubber Research Institute of Thailand.
Source: Bloomberg
