ACCORDING to a report from Bloomberg, rubber retreated from a one-week high after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cuts its global growth outlook for this year and next, raising concern that demand for rubber used in tyres may weaken.
The contract for March delivery on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange fell as much as 1.1% to 261.2 yen a kg (US$2,688 a metric tonne), says the report.
IMF lowered its growth forecast for this year to 2.9% and 3.6% next year, compared with earlier forecast of 3.1% and 3.8%. It cautions against weakening of emerging economies due to capital outflows and thus curb the demand for rubber; and that a US Government default could adversely affect the global economy..