Asia Rubber-Bridgestone, Sumitomo chase SIR20; China snubs Thai grades

* SIR20 sold to Bridgestone, Sumitomo for nearby delivery

* Thai grades untraded, SMR20 prices vary

By Lewa Pardomuan

SINGAPORE, Aug 5 (Reuters) – Tyre manufacturers BridgestoneCorp and Sumitomo Rubber Industries bought afew cargoes of Indonesian rubber for nearby shipments, dealerssaid on Tuesday, but other grades struggled to attract buyersthis week.

A drop in benchmark Tokyo rubber futures also prompted someconsumers to wait for bargains, although sellers and processorswere complaining that tyre grade prices were already belowproduction cost.

“Most buyers are on the sidelines because they know there’splenty of rubber,” said a dealer in Kuala Lumpur. “There’s noneed to rush. I think they are bearish on the market and theywant to wait.”

The most active January contract on the Tokyo CommodityExchange fell to its weakest in more than a week at204.2 yen a kg as Asian stocks slipped after a survey showedChina’s services sector growth fell to a record low.

Bridgestone purchased Indonesia’s SIR20 grade at 77.00 U.S.cents a pound ($1.69 a kg) for September delivery and at 77.25cents for October in a series of overnight deals. Sumitomobought SIR20 at $1.71 a kg for November, dealers said.

Last week, the grade changed hands at $1.73 a kg.

The Thai market was sluggish, with STR20 offered at $1.75including freight to top consumer China. Another grade, RSS3,was offered at $2.03 including freight to China for Septemberdelivery, with no reports of deals.

Last week, RSS3 changed hands at $2.01 to $2.03 a kg forSeptember/October without freight but STR20 was unsold.

Tokyo rubber futures, which set the tone for tyre gradeprices in Southeast Asia, were under pressure from risinginventory in China and global oversupply. The most activecontract has dropped more than 25 percent this year.

Malaysia’s SMR20 was offered at $1.72 a kg but one dealer inSingapore sold the grade at $1.78 a kg for October delivery.

WEEK AHEAD

Tyre grade prices are likely to fall again next week becauseof limited buying interest, especially from China. (Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)