Rubber pricing under pressure as trade uncertainty continues

Tokyo – Natural rubber (NR) pricing remained under pressure in the final week of March as trade uncertainties continued to weigh on the market.

Rubber futures closed lower across all major Far East exchanges for the week ending 28 March, following the Trump Administration's decision to impose additional tariffs on imported cars and car parts, said Japan Exchange Group (JPX) 31 March.

The proposed 25% duty is set to take effect 2 April and is expected to generate $100 billion in additional revenue for the US.

In Osaka, Japan, OSE rubber contracts for August delivery closed marginally lower than the week before.

In Shanghai, China, SHFE and INE rubber contracts declined by 0.7% and 0.5% respectively, week-on-week.

In Singapore, SICOM’s active June rubber fell 1.4%, with traders reducing their positions amid market uncertainty.

According to JPX, a decline in open interest across exchanges confirms the cautious sentiment, leading to falling trading volumes.