Spot rubber rules steady

Spot rubber rules steady


Kottayam, May 12

Spot rubber finished almost unchanged on Wednesday. Market activities were in a dull pace as most traders preferred to wait for a clear trend to emerge after the sharp declines during the past few weeks.

Sheet rubber closed flat at Rs 152 a kg amidst scattered transactions..

Futures improve

The May futures for RSS 4 improved to Rs 151.10 (147.08), June to Rs 152.99 (148.27), July to Rs 152.90 (148.29) and August to Rs 150.80 (146.36) a kg on the NMCE.

Spot rates were (Rs/kg): RSS-4: 152 (152); RSS-5: 147.50 (147.50); ungraded: 144 (144.50); ISNR 20: 139 (139) and latex 60 per cent: 97 (97).

Rubber Advances as Stocks Rally Boosts Confidence in Recovery

May 13 (Bloomberg) -- Rubber advanced for the first time in three days as a global equity rally raised investor confidence in the economic recovery, boosting demand for raw materials.

Futures in Tokyo rebounded as much as 3.5 percent to 271.5 yen per kilogram ($2,914 a metric ton). The contract has dropped 9 percent this month on concern that the sovereign debt crisis that began in Greece will spread to other European countries.

Asian equities climbed, led by tech stocks, after International Business Machines Corp. and Cisco Systems Inc. earnings boosted confidence in the industry and as concerns eased about Europe’s debt crisis. The euro rose after Portugal sold 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) of 10-year bonds yesterday, getting higher demand than at previous auctions.

“Corporate earnings showed recovery in manufacturing activities,” Takaki Shigemoto, an analyst at research and investment company JSC Corp. in Tokyo, said today by phone. “Raw material demand will grow on rising production.”

Rubber for October delivery, the most-active contract, gained 4.4 yen to 266.7 yen a kilogram on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange at 11:41 a.m. local time.

Japanese companies including Toyota Motor Corp. and Panasonic Corp. forecast profits will surge this year as exports and cost cuts drive a recovery from the worst recession on record. Toyota, which vowed to slash 290 billion yen in costs, predicted profit will gain 48 percent.

The automaker is expanding in China and India, where rising wages and consumer confidence is fueling demand for cars, televisions and factory equipment.

Rubber futures reached a 21-month high of 338.5 yen on April 16 on rising demand and as supply from Thailand, the world’s largest exporter, declined seasonally.

‘Picking Up’

Growers in Thailand’s main producing area are beginning to resume tapping rubber trees after the low-production season, Shigemoto said. During February to April, rubber trees shed leaves and latex output slows, a period known as wintering.

“Shipments of smoked-sheet rubber from Thailand will probably start picking up early next month,” Shigemoto said. “Until then, supply in the international market will remain tight, buoying rubber prices.”

The free-on-board price of Thai RSS-3 grade rubber for June-delivery, which excludes freight and insurance, was unchanged at 112.65 baht ($3.48) a kilogram yesterday, according to the Rubber Institute of Thailand. The price climbed to a record 130.55 baht on April 28.

Rubber also advanced on speculation that China, the world’s largest consumer, may increase purchases to replenish inventories after stockpiles dropped to the lowest level in almost two years, Shigemoto said.

Natural rubber stockpiles monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 2,968 tons to 35,850 tons, the bourse said on May 7. The volume was the smallest since August 2008.

September-delivery rubber on the Shanghai Futures Exchange declined 0.2 percent to 22,245 yuan ($3,258) a ton at 10:46 a.m. local time.

Rubber futures seen steady; eyes spot demand
Posted: 12 May 2010 01:54 AM PDT
MUMBAI: Rubber futures, which hit upper circuit on Monday, are likely to trade in a narrow range this week as higher arrivals and production are seen offsetting good spot demand from tyre makers, analysts said.

"In physical markets in Kerala arrivals are gradually rising. Production is also expected to be on higher side," said Shiji Abraham, analyst with JRG Wealth Management. India's rubber production is likely to rise 7.5 percent to 893,000 tonnes in 2010/11 helping reduce costlier imports, a senior Rubber Board official said last month. "Tyre markers are increasing purchases due to sharp drop in prices," Shiji said.

Spot price of the most traded RSS-4 rubber (ribbed smoked sheet) has fallen over 11 percent since hitting a record high of 17,000 rupees per 100 kg in Kottayam, Kerala, on April 16, Rubber Board data showed. It rose by 200 rupees to 15,100 rupees on Monday.

The benchmark June contract on the National Multi-Commodity Exchange (NMCE) provisionally closed up 4 percent at 15,303 rupees per 100 kg. Tokyo rubber futures rose 2.6 percent on Monday, snapping a five-day falling streak as a weaker yen and a jump in oil prices gingered up investor sentiment, while China was said to have bought rubber last week.

(economictimes.indiatimes.com)





Sekhar Research To Invest RM35 Million To Produce Rubber Compound
Posted: 12 May 2010 01:54 AM PDT
PETALING JAYA, May 12 (Bernama) -- Sekhar Research Innovations Sdn Bhd (SRI), a tyre recycling technology developer, will invest RM35 million to establish a plant to produce rubber compound.

In announcing this here Wednesday, its Chief Executive Officer, Gopinath B. Sekhar, said 20,000 metric tonnes of compound masterbatch would be produced annually.

Compound masterbatch is derived from the recycling of scrap tyre rubber which is devulcanised and converted into raw rubber material.

"The plant will cater for both local and Asean markets and generate revenue in excess of RM80 million per annum.

"We are finalising a site in Port Klang and the plant will be completed and operational by year-end," he told a media briefing on the company's business plan.

Sekhar said SRI had, since 2006, invested more than RM3 million to develop the SRI Activation Technology, a proprietary solution, used in the production of compounds that are currently being tested and evaluated by global tyre manufacturers.

Locally, the company is evaluating and conducting road testing trials with the Rubber Research Institute of Malaysia (RRIM).

"We will produce 50 metric tonnes of compound masterbatch per month at our present test facility here in two months," he said, adding that initial production would be targeted at the retread tyre and general rubber goods market which is expected to generate a per annum revenue of more than RM2 million.

As part of the company's global expansion, SRI has a licencee in the United States for the eventual production of SRI compound masterbatch.

Sekhar said similar agreements were underway in Europe and Asia.

"We are offering a solution that provides a savings of between four and eight percent in terms of raw material cost.

"Given that profit margins in the industry are uniformly less than 10 per cent, the potential here is for profits to double," he added.

Sekhar said more than one billion tyres are produced globally anually valued at more than US$130 billion.

(bernama.com)





Rubber Slumps on Doubts Over Europe Bailout, China Auto Sales
Posted: 12 May 2010 01:53 AM PDT
By Aya Takada and Supunnabul Suwannakij
May 11 (Bloomberg) -- Rubber declined, reversing earlier gains, as commodities slumped on concerns that European bailout plans worth almost $1 trillion may not be sufficient to end the region’s sovereign debt crisis.
Futures in Tokyo fell as much as 2 percent to 264.1 yen per kilogram ($2,851 a metric ton) after jumping as much as 3.6 percent earlier. The price slumped to a five-month low of 259.5 yen per kilogram on May 7 on concerns that Europe’s debt crisis may slow the global economic recovery and weaken demand for the commodity used to make tires.
“Worries over European debt crisis spurred selling on equities around the globe, strengthening the dollar and pressuring commodities markets,” Kant Julotok, analyst at commodity broker Agrowealth Ltd., said by phone from Bangkok.
Rubber for October delivery, the most-active contract, declined 1.8 percent to settle at 264.5 yen on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange. The price touched a 21-month high of 338.5 yen on April 16 on speculation that economic growth will boost demand for the raw material.
Asian stocks fell as commodity-related companies dropped on concern that China will step up efforts to cool growth. Crude oil fell as investors questioned whether the European bailout plan will reduce deficits in Greece, Spain and Portugal.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index of equities fell as much as 1.1 percent after climbing 1.5 percent yesterday, the first gain in six days. The euro dropped against the dollar today for the first time in three days.
Crude oil for June delivery declined as much as 0.9 percent to $76.10 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange before trading at $76.15.
Car Sales Slow
Rubber also dropped after data showed yesterday that growth in China’s car sales slowed in April to the lowest level since March 2009, stoking concern that demand in the world’s largest rubber consumer may weaken, Kazuhiko Saito, an analyst at commodity broker Fujitomi Ltd., said today.
Sales of cars, sport-utility vehicles and multipurpose vehicles increased 33 percent from a year earlier to 1.11 million units, compared with a 63 percent jump in March, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said. Total vehicle demand climbed 34 percent to 1.56 million.
Chinese consumers’ willingness to spend dropped in the first quarter, possibly because of rising property prices, Nielsen Co. and the nation’s statistics bureau said in a statement on May 6, citing a survey. Consumer prices rose 2.8 percent in April from a year earlier, the fastest pace in 18 months, and property prices jumped 12.8 percent, the statistics bureau said today.
The free-on-board price of Thai RSS-3 grade rubber for June-delivery, which excludes freight and insurance, rose 2.7 percent to 112.65 baht ($3.48) a kilogram, according to the Rubber Institute of Thailand. The price climbed to a record 130.55 baht on April 28.
September-delivery rubber on the Shanghai Futures Exchange lost 1.8 percent to settle at 22,170 yuan ($3,247) a ton. It plunged to 22,000 yuan a ton on May 7, the lowest level since Feb. 9.