MUMBAI – Rubber futures on the Indian Commodity Exchange settled higher today tracking gains in contracts on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange, traders said.
The most active May contract of rubber on the domestic bourse ended up 2.3% at 11,676 rupees per 100 kg.
Contracts of rubber on the TOCOM were up over 2% today, taking cues from crude oil futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices of natural rubber track those of crude oil as the latter is used to make synthetic rubber.
The most active September contract of natural rubber on the Japanese bourse ended 2.3% higher at 152 yen (about 107.6 rupees per kg).
The price of the RSS-3 variety in Thailand rose by 89 cents to $137.20 per 100 kg, data from the Rubber Board showed. However, in Malaysia, the price of the SMR-20 variety was at $109.80 per 100 kg, down 26 cents.
The resumption of operations at Apollo Tyre's Perambra unit and permission to reopen hand gloves units led to the bullishness, said Ajay Kedia, managing director, Kedia Commodities.
However, the overall fundamentals in rubber market remain bearish due to a continued rout in demand following prolonged shutdowns across major economies, traders said.
Trade in key markets of Kerala has been hit as the nationwide lockdown has been extended until May 3 due to a surge in COVID-19 cases. Confirmed cases of COVID-19 in India have crossed over 21,300 and the death toll has risen to 681.
Source Cogencis