TOKYO, April 13 (Reuters) – Benchmark TOCOM rubber futures rose for a third consecutive session on Wednesday to a new 8-month high, lifted by overnight strength in oil, while hopes of a pick-up in top buyer China and concern over slow output in Southeast Asia also gave support.
FUNDAMENTALS
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for September delivery JRUc6 0#2JRU: was up 5.1 yen, or 2.7 percent, at 194.1 yen per kg as of 0031 GMT, after earlier reaching a high of 194.9 yen, the strongest since August 14 last year.It rose nearly 7 percent in the last two sessions.
Russia and Saudi Arabia reached a consensus on Tuesday about an oil output freeze, Russia’s Interfax news agency quoted a diplomatic source in Doha as saying ahead of producers’ meeting there on April 17.
Vehicle sales in China grew 8.8 percent in March and are expected to grow 5 percent in the second quarter of 2016, China’s automakers association said on Tuesday, slowing slightly from the first three months of the year.
The ongoing El Nino – a warming of sea-surface
temperatures in the Pacific that typically leads to scorching weather across Asia and East Africa but heavy rains and floods in South America – has already been linked to serious crop damage, forest fires and flash floods.
MARKET NEWS
With hopes of a production freeze among top producers Russia and Saudi Arabia back in play, global oil prices climbed to four-month highs overnight. But U.S. crude futures fell in early Asian trade on Wednesday on profit taking and concern over a larger-than-expected build in U.S.crude stocks.
The U.S. dollar was back above 108.60 yen JPY= in early
Wednesday, having climbed from a near 18-month trough around 107.63 set on Monday. FRX/
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei stock average (XC0009692440) was up 1.7 percent in Wednesday trade on the back of a weaker yen and a gain in Wall Street.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
The following data is expected on Wednesday: (Time in GMT)
China Trade data Mar
0900 Euro zone Industria production Feb
1230 U.S. Retail sales Mar
1400 U.S. Business inventories Feb
No exact timing for China trade data.
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Ed Davies)
