TOKYO, Aug 21 (Reuters) – Benchmark TOCOM rubber futures rose on Monday, backed by a jump in oil prices on Friday and a solid tone in Shanghai futures.
FUNDAMENTALS
* The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for January delivery was up 1.4 yen, or 0.7 percent, at 217.6 yen ($1.99) per kg as of 0033 GMT, after posting a third straight weekly gain.
* The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for January delivery rose 80 yuan to 16,520 yuan ($2,477) per tonne in an overnight trade.
* Crude rubber inventories at Japanese ports stood at 7,616 tonnes as of July. 31, up 0.3 percent from the last inventory date, data from the Rubber Trade Association of Japan showed on Friday.
* Rubber inventories at TOCOM warehouses as of August 10 stood at 3,584 tonnes, down from 3,871 tonnes on July 31 but down 38 percent from a year earlier, according to the exchange’s latest report.
* Rubber inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 2.0 percent from the prior Friday, the exchange said on Friday.
* Confidence at Japanese manufacturers rose to its highest level in a decade in August led by materials producers, a Reuters poll showed, a further sign of broadening recovery in the economy.
MARKET NEWS
* Oil prices rose sharply on Friday, as the dollar fell and U.S. drillers cut rigs, feeding a rally that boosted global benchmark Brent crude to a weekly gain while U.S. crude was virtually flat on the week.
* The U.S. dollar dropped nearly 1 percent against the yen last Friday, falling to 108.58 yen, its lowest since late April. It was quoted around 109.22 yen in early Monday.
* Japan’s benchmark Nikkei stock average inched lower on Monday after Wall Street indexes ended a volatile session lower last Friday.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
* The following data is expected on Monday: (Time in GMT)
1230 U.S. National activity index Jul
($1 = 109.2200 yen)
($1 = 6.6700 Chinese yuan renminbi)
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Richard Pullin)
