Asia SBR falls $100-200/t on crude, natural rubber

13 August 2008 09:09  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--Asian styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) prices are likely to fall further on weaker energy and natural rubber values, tyre producers said on Wednesday.

“We are expecting SBR prices to fall further, given the declining crude and natural rubber prices,” a tyre producer said.

September spot offers for non-oil grade 1502 SBR have dropped $100-200/tonne to $3,200-3,300/tonne CFR (cost and freight) Asia from August, as declining feedstock butadiene (BD) and styrene monomer (SM) values added to the downward pressure.

Feedstock BD and SM prices have fallen by about $100-200/tonne in the past month, with BD slipping below $3,300/tonne CFR northeast (NE) Asia and SM dipping to around $1,450/tonne CFR NE Asia.

Crude had fallen by more than $7/bbl in the past week to around $113/bbl while natural rubber had dropped to around $2.85/kg FOB southeast (SE) Asia, down from around $3.15/kg FOB SE Asia at the end of July.

Demand for SBR has also waned, with several tyre producers slashing operating rates in China by more than 50% due to power and transport restrictions imposed by the Chinese government during the Beijing Olympics.

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By: Helen Yan
+65 6780 4359

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