Major tyre makers are in the market to buy rubber for nearby delivery, but China's persistent absence weighs on the physical market in Asia, dealers said on Thursday. Purchases from top consumer China have declined since at least March as it turns to domestic inventory, and the auto market starts to cool after Beijing stripped away most of the incentives to boost consumption.
Indonesia's SIR20 grade was traded late on Wednesday at $4.66 a kg for July, with demand coming from tyre makers such as Bridgestone, Japan's largest tyre maker. Buyers placed bids at $4.67 on Thursday, but no deals were struck. Malaysia's SMR20 changed hands overnight at $4.67 to $4.68 a kg, but there were no reports of deals for two Thai grades, RSS3 and STR20. Physical prices have dropped around 20 percent since hitting a life-time high above $6 a kg in February, driven by futures selling on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange.
Thai RSS3 grade, often seen as the benchmark physical price, was quoted at $5.15 a kg for July delivery, down sharply from a record at $6.40 struck in February. STR20 was quoted at $4.70 a kg, about 4 cents more expensive than the Indonesian grade.
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