Japanese rubber futures drop

BEIJING/SINGAPORE: Japanese rubber futures fell for a second session on Thursday, tracking lower physicals amid easing supply pressures. The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for September delivery closed 1.9 yen, or 0.61% lower, at 309.6 yen ($2.01) per kg. The rubber contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) for September delivery rose 85 yuan to finish at 14,590 yuan ($2,015.67) per metric ton.

The price of Thailand’s benchmark export-grade smoked rubber sheet (RSS3) further eased to 87.5 Thai baht ($2.38) per kg on a free-on-board basis on Thursday after a prolonged Songkran festival break. The latex yield in Yunnan’s rubber producing areas is expected to increase after the Songkran festival, with major supply-side issues less likely to occur this year, China-based consultancy Zijin Tianfeng Futures said in a research note.