TOKYO, Dec 5 (Reuters) – Benchmark TOCOM rubber futures rose on Monday as higher oil prices and a gain in Shanghai futures in Friday evening trade led investors to unwind some short positions.
FUNDAMENTALS
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for May delivery JRUc6 0#2JRU: was up 3.1 yen, or 1.4 percent, at 232.8 yen ($2.05) per kg as of 0041 GMT, after losing 3 percent last week. RUB/T
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for May delivery SNRcv1 rose 140 yuan to 17,990 yuan ($2,613.7) per tonne in Friday evening trade.
Rubber inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 7.5 percent from a week earlier, the exchange said on Friday.
Hefty discounts helped boost November U.S. auto sales 3.7 percent, automakers reported on Thursday, putting the industry within reach of the annual sales record set in 2015.
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has lost a referendum on constitutional reform by a wide margin, exit polls and early projections showed on Sunday, throwing his future into doubt and opening the door to renewed political instability in Italy.
Austrian voters roundly rejected on Sunday a candidate vying to become the first freely elected far-right head of state in Europe since World War Two, halting at least temporarily the wave of populism sweeping Western democracies.
MARKET NEWS
Oil prices rallied for their best week in at least five years on Friday, steadying above $51 a barrel, following OPEC’s decision to cut crude output to rein in a global glut that has weighed on prices for more than two years.
The euro tumbled in early Asian trade on Monday after Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said he would resign after conceding defeat in a referendum over his plan to reform the constitution. USD/
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei stock average (XC0009692440) edged down on Monday after Wall Street ended last week on a cautious note, with the Dow .DJI off 0.11 percent. MKTS/GLOB
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
The following data is expected on Monday: (Time in GMT)
0145 China Caixin services PMI Nov
0855 Germany Markit services PMI Nov
0900 Euro zone Markit services PMI final Nov
0930 Euro zone Sentix index Dec
1000 Euro zone Retail sales Oct
1500 U.S. ISM Non-manufacturing PMI Nov
1500 U.S. Employment trends Nov
($1 = 6.8830 Chinese yuan renminbi)
($1 = 113.6000 yen)
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Richard Pullin)
