Tokyo rubber lower; Shanghai rises

Key Tokyo rubber futures ended down 0.4 percent on Wednesday as a sharp deterioration in economic conditions and worries about rising supply dampened sentiment, with the market wedged into a tight range seen in the past three months. The key Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for January delivery settled down 1.4 yen at 362.4 yen per kg.
The most active Shanghai rubber contract for January delivery rose 0.9 percent to close at 34,100 yuan per tonne. Volume stood at 574,662 lots. "With upward momentum very weak, the market is wedged in a very narrow range," said Naoki Asami, chief broker at trading house Kanetsu. "European debt woes and worries of rising supply from producing countries kept investors sidelined, despite upbeat news of a recovery in car output in the United States and solid prices in Shanghai."