Asia synthetic rubber producers hike Oct/Nov prices

05 October 2010 04:33  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS)--Asian synthetic rubber producers are hiking offers by $200/tonne (€146/tonne) for fresh late October and November shipments on the back of rising natural rubber and crude prices, manufacturers said on Tuesday.

“Crude has gone above $80/bbl while natural rubber futures have surged to more than $3,500/tonne, so sentiment is very bullish,” a Korean synthetic rubber producer said.

“We are targeting $2,500/tonne for styrene butadiene rubber non-oil grade 1502 and $3,000/tonne for butadiene rubber,” he added.

However, the downstream tyre makers are resisting the significant price hike.

“November month looks uncertain and trade tends to slow at the end of the year in light of the year-end festive holidays, so we can’t expect demand to be strong and to be able to support such a big price hike,” a downstream tyre producer said.

Natural rubber and synthetic rubber prices tend to move in tandem as they are inter-dependent substitutes in the production of tyres for the auto industry.

Non-oil grade 1502 SBR prices currently hover around $2,250/tonne CFR (cost and freight) northeast (NE) Asia while butadiene rubber (BR) values were at $2,800/tonne CFR NE Asia in the week ending 29 September, according to ICIS.

“The US currency is weak and as international trade in synthetic rubber is denominated in the US dollar, we can expect prices to rise accordingly,” a trader said.

($1 = €0.73)

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By: Helen Yan
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