Tocom rubber futures settle sharply higher as steadier crude oil, talk of possible intervention measures by Thailand spur short covering, mild fresh long buying by day traders, says Mitsubishi Corporation futures analyst, Shuji Sugata. Says test of Y156.3/kg technical resistance possible tomorrow, “though a longer-term weak outlook for crude, which appears to be finding resistance at $40/bbl, along with some doubts about the viability of Thailand”s proposal to stockpile 200,000 tons (of rubber) may mean selling comes in sooner rather than later.” However, Tocom should find near-term support at Y145/kg five-day moving average, barring fresh bearish news, Sugata says. Benchmark June RSS3 contract settles Y10.9 higher at Y148.8/kg. (ANJ)

Source:  Dow Jones

BANGKOK, Jan 13 (Reuters) – Tokyo rubber futures tumbled 7.8
percent on Tuesday as a fall in oil prices spurred stop-loss
selling, which outweighed a Thai government plan to shore up
rubber prices.
* The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity
Exchange <0#JRU:> for June delivery fell 11.8 yen, or 7.8
percent, to settle at 137.9 yen ($1.55) per kg.
* Rubber futures had jumped 4.6 percent on Friday as oil
prices gained. Tokyo financial markets were closed on Monday for
a national holiday.
* U.S. crude fell more than $1 a barrel on Tuesday to
its lowest in more than two weeks, extending a near 8 percent
loss overnight on worries about energy demand.
* U.S. jobless data released on Friday offered further
evidence of the severity of global economic problems, with the
U.S. unemployment rate hitting its highest level in almost 16
years. [ID:nN09282664]
* In an effort to shore up prices, the Thai government plans
to buy up to 100,000 tonnes of rubber from the market this year
and keep it in stocks, agriculture ministry sources and industry
officials said on Monday. [ID:nBKK233598]
* Last month the world’s top three rubber-producing
countries, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, agreed to cut 2009
rubber exports by a sixth, or 915,000 tonnes, to prop up prices.
* Looking ahead, benchmark Tokyo rubber futures could extend
December’s rebound and rise further this month because of hopes
of more buying from China and worries about tight supplies, a
Reuters poll showed on Monday. [ID:nBKK401180]
* In the physical market, Indonesian SIR20 was last traded at
65.75 U.S. cents per pound for February and March shipment, while
SIR20 for April shipment was sold at 67.50 cents per pound,
traders said.

PRICES OF ASIAN PHYSICAL RUBBER COMPARED WITH FRIDAY
Grade Price Change
Thai RSS3 (Feb) $1.55/kg +$0.03
Thai RSS3 (Mar) $1.55/kg +$0.03
Thai STR20 (Feb) $1.50/kg unchanged
Thai STR20 (Mar) $1.50/kg unchanged
Malaysia SMR20 (Feb) $1.48/kg +$0.01
Malaysia SMR20 (Mar) $1.48/kg +$0.01
Indonesia SIR20 (Feb) $0.67/lb +$0.01
Indonesia SIR20 (Mar) $0.67/lb +$0.01
Thai USS3 47 unchanged
Thai 60-percent latex (drums, Feb) $1,200 +$100
Thai 60-percent latex (bulk, Feb) $1,100 +$100
Source:  Reuters

BANGKOK, Jan 12 (Reuters) – The Thai government plans to buy up to 100,000 tonnes of rubber from the market this year and keep it in stocks in order to shore up prices, agriculture ministry sources and industry officials said on Monday.
“We will submit for cabinet approval tomorrow the plan to buy rubber from farmers through the channel of agricultural cooperative networks across the country,” a senior agriculture ministry official told Reuters.
“We would need to spend around 4 billion baht ($115 million) from the government budget for this scheme,” said another ministry official, who asked not to be named. This is a Thai initiative to support rubber farmers, separate from the latest attempt by rubber-producing countries to prop up world rubber prices, he said.
The world’s top three rubber-producing countries — Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia — agreed on Dec. 13 to cut their 2009 rubber exports by a sixth, or 915,000 tonnes, to prop up prices. [nJAK424464]
The government will offer soft loans to the Rubber Growers Cooperative Federation of Thailand, which has 675 offices around the country, to buy rubber from farmers and keep it in its stocks, according to the plan.
The government would not fix the price at which the rubber would be bought from farmers, but would buy at prevailing market levels, anticipating that this would push prices up gradually.
“We would buy at the market price and keep it in stocks, waiting to sell when the market prices rise so that we can make a profit from that,” said Jirakorn Kosaisawe, deputy chief of the Department of Agriculture.
The chairman of the Rubber Growers Cooperative Federation of Thailand said farmers would be happy if the price of unsmoked sheet (USS3) stayed above 40 baht per kg.
“I think a price for USS3 of around 40 baht is resonable, a level that farmers would not make a loss at,” said Perk Lertwangpong, chairman of the federation.
USS3 unsmoked sheet, a raw material grade for export rubber sheet, was at 45 baht per kg on Monday.
Thailand, the world’s biggest rubber exporter, accounting for around 33 percent of the global rubber trade, sold 2.9 million tonnes in 2007, slightly down from 3.0 million tonnes in 2006, according to the Commerce Ministry.
In 2008, Thailand was forecast to ship 2.7 million tonnes, according to Thai Rubber Association data. ($1=34.81 baht)

Source:  Reuters

[Dow Jones] Asian cash rubber prices mixed in very thin volume due to closure of bellwether Tocom, though traders report uptick in inquiries, particularly from China-based end users. Raw material availability in Indonesia, world”s second-largest producer, remains low, though improvement in tapping weather in southern Thailand has led to an increase in tapping operations in recent days, says trader in Singapore.

Source:  Dow Jones

BANGKOK, Jan 9 (Reuters) – Tokyo rubber futures rose 4.6
percent on Friday, tracking rebounding oil prices, but gains were
capped by profit-taking.
* The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity
Exchange <0#JRU:> for June delivery rose 6.6 yen or 4.6 percent
to settle at 149.7 yen ($1.64) per kg.
* Oil prices rose by $1 a barrel on Friday on signs that top
crude exporter Saudi Arabia would deepen supply cuts next month.
U.S. crude for February delivery rose by $1.00 to $42.65 a
barrel.
* The rubber market has taken its lead from the oil market,
but traders said commodities remain vulnerable to bleak economic
figures, although supply concerns provide support.
* A U.S. government report on Thursday showed the number of
people remaining on jobless rolls last week rose to a 26-year
high. [ID:nN08526969] Monthly U.S. jobs data due on Friday is
expected to show the country lost more than 500,000 jobs in
December.
* Japan’s crude rubber inventories amounted to 9,066 tonnes
as of Dec. 31, up 3.1 percent from Dec. 20, Rubber Trade
Association of Japan data showed on Friday.
* Rubber inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai
Futures Exchange fell 7 percent from the end of last year, the
exchange said on Friday. Inventories fell to 64,165 tonnes from
69,340 tonnes on Dec 30.

PRICES OF ASIAN PHYSICAL RUBBER COMPARED WITH THURSDAY
Grade Price Change
Thai RSS3 (Feb) $1.52/kg -$0.03
Thai RSS3 (Mar) $1.52/kg -$0.03
Thai STR20 (Feb) $1.50/kg unchanged
Thai STR20 (Mar) $1.50/kg unchanged
Malaysia SMR20 (Feb) $1.47/kg -$0.02
Malaysia SMR20 (Mar) $1.47/kg -$0.02
Indonesia SIR20 (Feb) $0.66/lb unchanged
Indonesia SIR20 (Mar) $0.66/lb unchanged
Thai USS3 47 unchanged
Thai 60-percent latex (drums, Feb) $1,100 unchanged
Thai 60-percent latex (bulk, Feb) $1,000 unchanged
($1=91.15 Yen)
($1=34.82 baht)

Source:  Reuters