Rubber prices drifted lower on Wednesday following a sharp decline in Tokyo futures, but trade remained subdued as buyers wait for lower prices, dealers said.
The benchmark September TOCOM rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange, the global trend-setter for rubber, was down 7.8 yen per kg at 256.6 yen. "Trade has been sluggish. Overseas buyers are monitoring the market closely, still waiting to buy at lower prices," a dealer said.
Offers for Indonesia's tyre-grade SIR20 were down $0.03 at $1.92 a kg for May shipment. Offers for Malaysia's tyre-grade SMR20 were also down $0.03 at $1.97. But in Thailand, the prices remained steady as the baht hit its highest in just over a year on hopes of an end to the country's political crisis.
It firmed to 38.23 per dollar, the day's best-performing currency, after Prime Minister Thaksin Chinaware declared he would step down to defuse the long-running crisis.
It was at 38.28 per US dollar. Offers for tyre-grade Standard Thai Rubber, or STR20 block, for May shipment were steady at $2.05 a kg and offers for Thai 60-percent concentrated latex were at $1,555-1,556 a tonne in drums.
Thai benchmark RSS3 rubber sheet for May shipment was also unchanged at $2.15 a kg, free on board.
Trade in Thailand, the world's top exporter of rubber, has been sluggish and traders said very few overseas buyers had bought for May shipment.
"They've covered their positions for April and a little bit for May. They are just buying on a hand-to-mouth basis," said one. "Buyers are still waiting. They think from June, July onward, the price will come down," said a dealer in the southern town of Hat Yai.
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