Japanese rubber futures lose ground

SINGAPORE: Japanese rubber futures nudged lower on Thursday, snapping a two-day winning streak, as uncertain demand prospects and lower synthetic rubber prices outweighed the impact of Southeast Asian supply disruptions caused by wet weather

The May Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract closed down 2.8 yen, or 0.74%, at 373.1 yen ($2.49) per kg. The May rubber contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) shed 60 yuan, or 0.32%, to finish at 18,640 yuan ($2,564.03) per metric ton. The most active January butadiene rubber contract on the SHFE fell 335 yuan, or 2.49%, to 13,100 yuan ($1,801.98) per metric ton.

Downstream demand has yet to improve significantly, Chinese financial information site Hexun Futures said in a note. Looking forward, the focus should be on the positive impact of implementation of macroeconomic policies on rubber demand, and the impact of weather on production, Hexun said in a separate note.

As the weather pattern gradually changes from El Nino to La Nina, the impact of storms in Southeast Asia is continuously expanding, causing great disturbances to the production of natural rubber, a major agricultural product of the region, Chinese financial data provider Tonghuashun Futures noted. Judging from weather conditions, recent storms have not yet shown any obvious signs of easing, leading the market to worry about the production capacity of rubber, and pushing up rubber prices again, Tonghuashun added.