Spot rubber rules firm

Spot rubber rules firm

Kottayam, May 27

Spot rubber ruled firm on Thursday. According to sources, the market was rather inactive during the session as the National Multi Commodity Exchange remained closed on account of Buddha Purnima. Still most of the grades were moderately better as the international indices ended on a positive note.

Sheet rubber increased to Rs 171 from Rs 170 a kg amidst comparatively low volumes. The trend was mixed.

Futures improve

The June futures improved to ¥369.5/Rs 190.65 (¥363), July to ¥349.7 (¥341.1), August to ¥318.7 (¥308.3), September to ¥294.1 (¥283.8), October to ¥283.8 (¥275.9) and November to ¥281.3 (¥273.7) a kg for RSS 3 during the day session on Tokyo Commodity Exchange. The grade firmed up further at its June futures to ¥373.7 (Rs 192.70), July to ¥351, August to ¥320.9, September to ¥296.8, October to ¥286.2 and November to ¥283.5 a kg during the night session.

RSS 3 (spot) flared up to Rs 183.64 (180.12) a kg at Bangkok.

Spot rates were (Rs/kg): RSS-4: 171 (170); RSS-5: 168.00 (167.50); ungraded: 166 (165); ISNR 20: 151 (151) and latex 60 per cent: 110 (110).


Rubber Advances to Three-Week High as Oil Gains, Yen Declines



May 27 (Bloomberg) -- Rubber advanced for a second day to the highest level in three weeks as a rally in crude oil and limited supplies from Thailand, the largest producer, boosted demand for the commodity used to make tires.


Futures in Tokyo were also bolstered by a fall in Japan’s currency against the dollar, which raised the appeal of yen- denominated contracts. The yen weakened as signs that Asia- Pacific economies are recovering sapped demand for Japan’s currency as a refuge.


“Overall sentiment is bullish” given the gains in oil and other commodities, Kazunori Kokubo, general manager of the international business department at commodity broker Yutaka Shoji Co., said by phone from Tokyo.


Rubber for November delivery, the most-active contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange, rose as much as 3 percent to 281.90 yen per kilogram ($3,122 a metric ton) before settling at 281.3 yen. Earlier, it fell to 272 yen on concerns that Europe’s debt crisis may stall economic recovery in the region.


Oil futures in New York climbed as much as 1.5 percent, boosting the cost of making synthetic rubber from naphtha. The yen declined to 110.54 per euro as of 6:40 a.m. in London from 109.47 in New York yesterday.


The most-active rubber contract gained 5.5 percent this week, a second weekly gain, amid worries that there’s continued tight supply from major producing countries. The “supply situation hasn’t improved,” Kokubo said.


Tight Supply


The low supply from key producers together with robust demand in Asia will keep the market strong, the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries said in its May newsletter on May 25. Demand from China, India and Malaysia, which account for more than 45 percent of global consumption, should stay robust, the association said.


Cash prices in Thailand, the largest exporter, extended gains as rains in some southern provinces disrupted tapping, lowering supply, the Rubber Research Institute of Thailand said on its website today. Processers continued purchases on worries there’s a supply shortage, it said. Thai RSS-3 grade rubber for June delivery rose 1.6 percent to 125.40 baht ($3.85) a kilogram.


September-delivery rubber on the Shanghai Futures Exchange added 0.8 percent to settle at 22,585 yuan ($3,306) a ton.


(bloomberg.com)





Vietnam's May Rubber Exports Declined

Posted: 26 May 2010 11:28 PM PDT



By Siwaporn Bumroongpan


27 May 2010 - Vietnam’s rubber exports for May is estimated about 20,000 tonnes, down 53.5% from the same period in 2009, according to the Government’s General Statistics Office. In terms of value, it is estimated down by 6.2% from US $64 million to US$60 million compared with the same month last year.


For the first 5 months of 2010, Vietnam rubber export is estimated at about 176,000 tonnes, with a value of US $479 million, which up 85.5% in value, but down 4.4% in volume when compared with the same period the previous year.


For the first quarter of the year, Vietnam exported 123,000 tonnes of rubber, valued at US $325 million.


For the month of April, the export was at 32,750 tonnes, worth US $94.14 million, raising the total export volume for Jan-Apr to 155,750 tonnes for total value of US$419.48 million, up 10.6 percent and 5.6 percent, respectively against the same period of 2009.


(irco.biz)





Surging tyre import worries rubber sector

Posted: 26 May 2010 11:23 PM PDT

KOCHI: A rising tide of Chinese-made two-wheeler tyre import has the domestic tyre industry and rubber planters worried.


The import of two-wheeler tyres (mostly for motorcycles) has seen a sharp rise to 3.23 lakh tyres in 2009-10 from 21,137 in 2008-09. Automobile Tyre Manufacturers Association (ATMA) spokesmen said nearly 80-90% of this import is from China.


According to automobile industry spokesmen, the two-wheeler tyre import could follow the trend seen in truck tyre shipment. The import of truck tyres increased from 80,000 to 13-14 lakh tyres in 5 years.


Speaking to ET, Mr Rajiv Budhraja, ATMA director general, said, “The industry is keeping a close watch on the import scenario and will take a call on the development soon.” The import price is sometimes as low as $5 for motorcycle tyres and $1.2 for tubes as some importers take advantage of dumping and under-invoicing.


(economictimes.indiatimes.com)





Asian rubber producers mull setting up regional cash market

Posted: 26 May 2010 11:21 PM PDT

* Consortium represents 70 percent of global rubber output


* Futures seen distorting market fundamentals


By Apornrath Phoonphongphiphat


BANGKOK, May 25 (Reuters) - Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, the world's top three rubber producers, want to set up a cash market for the commodity that would make pricing more transparent and stabile, industry officials said on Tuesday. A regional rubber market might also reduce the influence on physical prices of futures markets such as the Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM), said Abdul Rasip Latiff, chief executive officer of the IRCo.


The IRCo, or International Rubber Consortium, groups rubber industry officials, exporters and government officials from the three countries that account for 70 percent of world rubber output.


"The concept has been agreed upon and a special committee of experts has been established to study the feasibility of this concept in greater detail," Latiff said in an IRCo statement.


Cash prices are relatively high at the moment, with the benchmark Thai RSS3 offered at $3.80 per kg on Tuesday,


Prices have been extremely volatile in recent years, hitting a record high of $4.10 per kg in April as the dry season cut latex output at a time of strong demand.


Traders, producers and end-users, mostly tyre makers, have blamed the volatility to some extent on the speculative nature of trading on TOCOM, which has overshadowed the fundamentals in the physical market.


The cash market would be located in one of the three countries and would include warehouses and a clearing house, where buyers and sellers would commit to physical deals with specified shipment dates, said a senior official at the IRCo, who asked not to be named.


Although there are local markets in several key rubber areas in the three countries, such as Hat Yai in Thailand, the IRCo believes a regional market would help increase the influence of fundamental factors.


"The regional rubber market will help reflect real supply and demand on the fundamental side as well as discover appropriate price levels," another IRCo official said.


Most traders welcomed the idea of setting up a cash rubber market in the region, agreeing it would help stabilise prices and give buyers and sellers a centre for exchanging rubber, but they had reservations.


In particular, they felt big players might be able to influence prices more easily if there was one market.


"The concept is good, but the question is, how can they assure us there'll be no collusion? Otherwise they would fail to stabilise prices," a Malaysian trader said.


(in.reuters.com)