This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009 at 6:41 pm and is filed under Rubber News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
TOKYO, June 23 (Reuters) – Key Tokyo rubber futures fell to their lowest level in nearly three months on Tuesday as investor sentiment was hurt by a drop in oil prices and concerns about the economy.
* The recent sell-off has caused technical charts to worsen, and they now suggest a downtrend towards 140 yen per kg, traders said.
* The key Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for November delivery <0#JRU:> fell 4.8 yen, or 3 percent, to 152.9 yen per kg. It earlier touched 151.0 yen, the lowest for any benchmark since March 31.
* Oil prices dropped for the third straight session on Tuesday as renewed worries over the uncertain outlook for major economies sparked a sell-off across global equity markets. [O/R]
* “Rubber followed other commodities lower,” said a manager at a Japanese trading company, adding that some fund managers started building up fresh short positions, eyeing 140 yen as a near-term target.
* Investor appetite for risk stayed low on Tuesday, a day after a gloomy assessment of the global economy from the World Bank.
* Regional stock markets dropped with Japan’s Nikkei share average <.N225> sliding almost 3 percent to track a broad sell-off in U.S. stocks on Monday.
* The World Bank said on Monday that prospects for the global economy remained “unusually uncertain” as it cut 2009 growth forecasts for most economies, adding to concerns of a slower turnaround.
* The yen extended recent gains against the dollar — another negative for the Tokyo rubber market. [USD/] A higher yen deflates yen-based commodity futures prices.
* Thai rubber exports fell 19.6 percent in May from a year earlier due to limited supply, in part due to government policy, and weaker demand from the car industry, according to official data and traders on Tuesday.
* Underlining a downtrend in exports by major producers, the head of the Malaysian Rubber Board said on Monday that exports by the world’s No.3 producer may fall 10 percent this year, nearly double a plan to cut exports along with other producers, as global demand from the auto sector remains weak. [ID:nKLR468876]
* A consultancy group said on Monday that moderate recovery in the world economy was expected to help reduce a global surplus in natural rubber in 2010 and 2011.
Source: Reuters