TOKYO (Sept 12): Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures edged higher on Tuesday as the US dollar held on to most of the gains, following a rebound on improving risk sentiment as worries over North Korea and Hurricane Irma eased.
Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, also got support from firm Shanghai futures as China’s yuan eased against the dollar for the third straight session.
The dollar was steady at 109.39 yen after rallying 1.4% on Monday, its biggest one-day surge since mid-January.
Weaker yen and yuan make the currency-denominated commodities cheaper for holders of other currencies.
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for February delivery finished 2.4 yen higher at 228.8 yen (US$2.09) per kg.
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for January delivery rose 130 yuan to finish at 16,750 yuan (US$2,565) per tonne.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore’s SICOM exchange for October delivery last traded at 167.70 US cents per kg, down 0.3 cent.
(US$1 = 109.4800 yen)
(US$1 = 6.5295 Chinese yuan)
