By Aya Takada
Feb. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Natural rubber futures declined for the first time in six days on concern deepening slump in the auto industry will further erode demand for the commodity used to make tires.
Prices in Tokyo dropped as much as 2 percent to the lowest since Feb. 5. Nissan Motor Co., Japan’s third-largest automaker, said yesterday it will slash 20,000 jobs and post its first loss in nine years as the global recession cools car demand. In India, sales of passenger cars fell 3.2 percent in January from a year ago, the fourth straight month of decline.
“The negative news from the auto industry kept investors off the commodity consumed mainly by carmakers,” said Takaki Shigemoto, an analyst at Tokyo-based broker Okachi & Co., said.
Rubber for July delivery, the most-active contract, fell 0.8 percent to 143.3 yen a kilogram ($1,566 a metric ton) on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange at the 11:00 a.m. local time break.
Nissan expects a net loss of 265 billion yen for the year to March 31, compared with its October estimate of 160 billion yen in net income. The company also scrapped its second-half dividend.
Nissan’s sales in the U.S., its biggest market, plunged 31 percent in January as demand for Altima sedans and Xterra sport- utility vehicles dried up. Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn’s elimination of 9 percent of the workforce caps a month in which all of Japan’s carmakers slashed forecasts and Panasonic Corp. and NEC Corp. cut workers.
Thai Supply
Rubber futures also fell on speculation supply may increase in Thailand, the world’s largest exporter, Shigemoto said.
“Latex production was recovering this week after wet weather hindered plantation work,” he said.
Thai shippers offered RSS-3 grade rubber for March shipment at $1.52 a kilogram today, compared with $1.51 Feb. 5, he said.
May-delivery rubber on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, the most-active contract, lost 1.0 percent to 13,640 yuan ($1,997) a ton at 10:09 a.m. local time.
To contact the reporter on this story: Aya Takada in Tokyo atakada2@bloomberg.net
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