TOKYO, Nov 2 (Reuters) – Benchmark TOCOM rubber futures slid to a one-week low on Wednesday to extend losses into a third session, hurt by lower oil prices and as mounting uncertainty about next week’s U.S.presidential election sent the dollar down against the yen.
FUNDAMENTALS
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for April
delivery JRUc6 0#2JRU: was down 2.3 yen, or 1.3 percent, at 180.8 yen ($1.74) per kg as of 0037 GMT.It touched its lowest since Oct.
27 of 108.1 yen earlier in the session. RUB/T
A top aide to Hillary Clinton urged the FBI on Tuesday to
disclose what it knows about any ties between Donald Trump and Russia, accusing the agency of unfairly publicizing its inquiry into Clinton’s email practices while staying quiet about the Republican presidential candidate.
U.S.auto sales fell an estimated 6 percent in October despite increased consumer discounts on many popular models, as the trend toward pickup trucks and SUVs continued, automakers and WardsAuto reported on Tuesday.
Crude rubber inventories at Japanese ports stood at 7,318 tonnes as of Oct. 20, down 3.7 percent from the last inventory date, data from the Rubber Trade Association of Japan showed on Tuesday.
MARKET NEWS
Oil prices settled lower on Tuesday, then tumbled again after hours following a trade group’s report of a U.S.crude inventory build nine times larger than forecast.
The U.S. dollar fell about 1 percent against the yen JPY= to an eight-day low of 103.81 yen the previous day. It was quoted around 104.11 yen in early Wednesday trade.A stronger yen makes yen-denominated assets less affordable when purchased in other currencies.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei stock average (XC0009692440) dropped
more than 1 percent after global equity prices and the dollar fell sharply the previous day as investors sought safe havens on U.S.political uncertainty.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
The following data is expected on Wednesday: (Time in GMT)
0850 France Markit Manufacturing PMI final Oct
0855 Germany Unemployment data Oct
0955 Germany Markit Manufacturing PMI final Oct
0900 Euro Zone Markit Manufacturing PMI final Oct
1100 U.S. Mortgage activity index weekly
1215 U.S. ADP employment report Oct
($1 = 104.0700 yen)
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Joseph Radford)
