Japan's crude rubber inventories totalled 3,496 tonnes as of August 10, up 6.7 percent from 10 days earlier, data from the Rubber Trade Association of Japan showed. As of July 31, crude rubber inventories snapped a falling trend lasting more than four months, increasing about 25 percent to 3,275 tonnes from July 20 when they hit a record low of 2,628 tonnes.
Inventories had been at record lows since June 10. The latest figure was less than half the 7,449 tonnes of inventories a year ago. Some analysts have said the tightness in physical supplies would improve after rubber supplied to the market from producing countries showed signs of rising slightly.
Tight supply has kept the Tokyo market in backwardation for longer than usual at this time of year, making it unattractive for shippers to carry rubber cargoes to Japan, and resulting in the steady decline in rubber stocks. Rubber inventories hit a 2010 high on February 28, totalling 8,222 tonne. That was the highest since July 20, 2009.