Tokyo rubber futures tumbled nearly 4 percent to a 5-month low on Thursday, tracking falls on share markets and hurt by fears of falling demand amid a weak global economic outlook, dealers said. The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange for September delivery fell 7.2 yen to settle at 245.2 yen ($2.51) per kg.
The contract touched an intra-day low of 242.6 yen, down 9.8 yen or 3.9 percent, its lowest since November 2012. Falling TOCOM prices also dragged down physical prices. The price of benchmark Thai smoked rubber sheet (RSS3) was at $2.70 per kg, nearly halved from the record of $6.40 per kg in February 2012, forcing the Thai government to step in to shore up prices in a bid to support farmers. The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures Exchange for September delivery was down 505 yuan to finish at 18,725 yuan ($3,000) per tonne. The front-month May rubber contract on Singapore's SICOM exchange was last traded at 234.5 US cents per kg, down 1.4 cents.