The most active rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange surged to a record on Monday on fund buying driven by tight supply in producing countries and rising imports from top consumer China. TOCOM's May rubber contract hit a high at 396.4 yen a kg before settling at 395.5 yen, up 13.6 yen from previous settlement. The previous record was 388.9 yen a kg hit in 1980.
The most active May Shanghai rubber futures ended limit up at 35,320 yuan a tonne to track rallies on Tokyo futures. Fourth-month Shanghai rubber is expected to rise over the next four weeks to 38,915 yuan per tonne, a high touched on November 11, based on its wave pattern, according to Wang Tao, a Reuters market analyst for commodities and energy technicals.
Sixth month Tokyo rubber is expected to climb to 450 yen per kg over the next four weeks, based on its wave pattern. Tight supply in Indonesia, the world's second-largest rubber producer after Thailand, delayed the shipment of at least 10,000 tonnes of rubber for nearby delivery, boosting chances of a further rally in Tokyo futures, dealers said.