OREANDA-NEWS. March 17, 2015. Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures fell on Monday, erasing most of last week's gains, as traders fretted about demand in China after Premier Li Keqiang said it will not be easy to achieve the government's growth target this year.

Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, are being hit by concerns about Chinese demand as the government recently downgraded its growth target for 2015 to 7 percent, the lowest in 11 years.

On Sunday at a news briefing to mark the close of China's annual session of parliament, Li tried to allay fears about a stumbling economy by vowing to keep it growing at a reasonable speed, while acknowledging the job will not be easy.

The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for August delivery finished 3.1 yen, or 1.5 percent, lower at 210.2 yen per kg.

"Li said that, regarding the growth target, he does not have much confidence, so basically commodity prices are likely to fall for the first quarter and maybe into June," said an analyst at a rubber broker in Tokyo.

The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for September delivery fell 205 yuan to finish at 12,580 yuan per tonne.

The front-month rubber contract on Singapore's SICOM exchange for April delivery last traded at 142.40 U.S. cents per kg, down 0.8 cent.