TOKYO (July 20): Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures ended up 0.8% on Wednesday, their highest close in two weeks, buoyed by Shanghai futures and a weaker yen against the dollar.
Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, got support after Shanghai futures rose almost 4% in early trading.
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for December delivery <0#2JRU:> finished 1.2 yen higher at 159.4 yen (US$1.50) per kg, the highest close since July 5.
“Firm Shanghai futures supported TOCOM, but the market was offset by oil prices that were in doldrums,” said a source with a Tokyo-based dealer.
Oil futures were mixed on Wednesday with Brent posting limited gains and US crude trading sideways in advance of the release of official weekly inventory figures later in the day.
The dollar was quoted around 106.28 yen, up from around 105.89 yen on Tuesday afternoon, thanks to strong US data and rising expectations that the Bank of Japan will take additional easing steps.
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for September delivery rose 225 yuan to finish at 11,445 yuan (US$1,711) per tonne.
A survey of Chinese sales managers indicates that the economy is growing but at only about half the rate of official estimates, a private survey showed on Tuesday.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore’s SICOM exchange for August delivery last traded at 130 US cents per kg, down 0.8 cent.
(US$1 = 106.1600 yen)
(US$1 = 6.6874 Chinese yuan)
