Holidays keeps rubber trade quiet

Holidays keeps rubber trade quiet

SINGAPORE (Reuters): The Southeast Asian rubber market will be
quiet this week because of the Lunar New Year and Moslem Eid al-
Fitr holidays in several key rubber-producing countries, dealers
said on Monday.

"It is safe to say the market will be quieter this week
because of the Chinese New Year and the Eid al-Fitr
celebrations," a dealer in Indonesia said.

"Most of the producers, consumers and dealers will be off.
It'll be almost dead," a rubber trader for a Singapore-based
commodity house said.

Markets in Malaysia and Singapore will be closed on January 28
and 29 for Lunar New Year. The two countries, along with
Indonesia, will be closed on Jan 30 for Eid al-Fitr, which marks
the end of the holy Moslem fasting month of Ramadhan.

"The market will surely be quiet this week. There will be
Chinese New Year and the Eid al-Fitr. All the Chinese bosses will
be busy preparing for the New Year while the employees' minds are
set on Eid," a trader in Indonesia added.

"People will be keeping an eye on the still shaky situation in
Indonesia, but I doubt if anybody will be around this week," said
the general manager of a rubber trading house in Singapore.

Dealers around the region said prices climbed last week as
buyers like Goodyear and Bridgestone engaged in shortcovering
ahead of the holidays and due to their concerns over tight
supplies in the main rubber producing countries.

Traders in Indonesia said tire-grade SIR20 rubber was sold at
38.00 U.S. cents/lb for March shipment FOB Medan.

In Thailand, the benchmark RSS3 rubber for June shipment was
quoted at 76 U.S. cents a kg FOB Bangkok while July/August
shipments were seen at 77 cents, traders said.

The Malaysian Rubber Board quoted February RSS1 buyer at
326.50 Malaysian cents a kg at the close of trade last week, a
hefty 42 cents up from the level the previous week.