SHANGHAI: Japanese rubber futures ended lower for a second consecutive session on Monday, weighed down by a cooling in the broad-based commodities rally and lower oil prices.
The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for July delivery was down 1.2 yen, or 0.35 percent, at 343.3 yen (USD2.22) per kg. The rubber contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) for May delivery fell 620 yuan, or 3.7 3percent, to 15,980 yuan (USD2,299.08) per metric ton.
The most active March butadiene rubber contract on the SHFE fell 670 yuan, or 4.94 percent, to 12,900 yuan per metric ton. Commodities markets slumped, led by deep losses in gold, silver, oil and industrial metals as the choice of Kevin Warsh as the next Fed chair set off a wave of selling in risk assets that sent precious metals tumbling for a second session.
Oil prices fell nearly 5 percent, heading for the steepest single-session decline in more than six months, after US President Donald Trump said Iran was “seriously talking” with Washington, signalling de-escalation with an OPEC member.
Natural rubber often takes direction from oil prices as it competes for market share with synthetic rubber, which is made from crude oil.
Profit-taking by Chinese fund managers and short-covering led to a sharp increase in trading volume, while open interest on the Shanghai exchange fell sharply amid month-end position adjustments, the Japan Exchange Group said in a report on Monday.
Overall rubber prices remained firm, supported by the recent rally in broader commodity markets such as copper and crude oil, the report added.
OSE ribbed smoked sheet stocks in December 2025 have also declined to around 2,000 metric tons, their lowest in six years, according to data from the Japanese Exchange Group.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore Exchange’s SICOM platform for March delivery last traded at 184.7 US cents per kg, down 2.3 percent, as of 0709 GMT.
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