TOKYO—Natural rubber futures have ended their five-week streak of gains, due mainly to "substantial long liquidation and speculative selling."
The trading week ended June 14 saw rubber prices falling week-on-week across all major rubber exchanges, reported Japan Exchange Group (JPX) June 17.
In Osaka, Japan, OSE rubber futures for November delivery fell sharply, by 5.3 percent week-on-week amid moderate trading, while China's SHFE and INE declined by 3.2 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively.
In Singapore, SICOM's September delivery contracts closed 3.8 percent lower week-on-week, due to "profit-taking and long liquidation activities," JPX reported.
JPX linked the declines to unconfirmed reports of Chinese commodity hedge funds playing "a significant role as sellers, liquidating approximately 400,000 (metric) tons of long positions across the SHFE and INE markets."
The report also noted that official data from SHFE and INE reflected a considerable decline in open interest, down by nearly 9 percent and 10.2 percent.
Trading volume for rubber futures also decreased across all major exchanges during the week, reflecting reduced buying interest amid the market downturn.
