Tokyo, Shanghai rubber fall

Tokyo rubber futures were lower on Thursday on growing worries about a drop in demand if world economic growth is hurt by the unrest in the Middle East, but tight supply still lent some support, dealers said. The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange for August delivery edged 1.2 yen lower to settle at 475.9 yen ($5.81) per kg.
The most active Shanghai rubber contract for May delivery fell 400 yuan to finish at 38,460 yuan ($5,856) per tonne. "Players feared that demand could fall and oil prices did not perform very well, so players liquidated contracts to avoid risk," one dealer said. Dealers said they expected TOCOM rubber to rally on Friday as tight supply in producing countries should still lend support.