BANGKOK: Tokyo rubber futures dropped more than 3.4 percent to a near one-week low on Tuesday, retreating from a previous three-week high due to falling oil prices, while persistent concerns on the Europe debt crisis still weighed on the market, dealers said.
The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange for March delivery fell 8.1 yen to settle at 313.2 yen ($4.08) per kg.
It fell as low as 3.4 percent to finish at 310.5 yen, the lowest since Oct. 12.
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for January delivery fell 1,400 yuan to finish at 27,300 yuan ($4,2851) per tonne.
"Rubber sentiment turned weak due to Europe debt fears. However, Chinese data helped ease some concerns and it seemed like recovering oil prices lent some support," one dealer said.
Brent crude futures were steady above $110 a barrel, recovering from nearly 2 percent losses during overnight trade as Chinese economic data helped offset fears about Euro debt crisis.
China's annual economic growth eased to 9.1 percent in the third quarter from 9.5 percent in the previous quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Tuesday, as tight domestic monetary policy and easing foreign demand crimped activity.
The rate was slightly below market forecasts for growth of 9.2 percent, but this was offset by better-than-expected industrial production and retail sales numbers for September.
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said European governments would not present a definitive plan for the sovereign debt crisis at the Oct. 23 summit, curbing investor optimism about prospects for tackling the region's problems.
Dealers said TOCOM prices could rise further on Wednesday after prices found a strong support level of 310 yen, but still gains were likely to be limited by profit-taking.
Copyright Reuters, 2011
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