TOKYO, March 1 (Reuters) – Key TOCOM rubber futures dropped 1 percent on Friday, hovering near a two-month low marked this week as share prices fell on concerns over U.S. government spending cuts that are due to kick in and political uncertainty in Italy.
FUNDAMENTALS
* The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange for August delivery was changing hands down 3 yen, or 1 percent, from the previous close at 290.0 yen per kg as of 0017 GMT. It has fallen 2.4 percent on the week.
* On Wednesday, the contract dropped to 284.8 yen, the lowest for any benchmark since Dec. 21 and down 15.7 percent from a 10-month high marked earlier this month.
* The TOCOM market declined 7.2 percent in February.
* China’s official manufacturing PMI data is due at 0100 GMT, with the number forecast to be at four-month lows on weak overseas demand.
* China’s securities regulator has relaxed risk provision requirements for futures brokerages as part of revised risk management regulations, increasing the risk of volatility in local futures markets.
TOCOM Rubber Furures Prices on March 1, 2013 (yen / kilogram)
|
Month |
Last Settlement Price |
Open |
High |
Low |
Current |
Change |
Volume |
|
Mar 2013 |
275.2 |
272.4 |
273.0 |
272.3 |
272.5 |
-2.7 |
10 |
|
Apr 2013 |
277.5 |
274.6 |
275.0 |
274.5 |
275.0 |
-2.5 |
6 |
|
May 2013 |
281.1 |
280.0 |
280.0 |
277.4 |
278.1 |
-3.0 |
48 |
|
Jun 2013 |
285.7 |
283.8 |
283.8 |
281.3 |
282.0 |
-3.7 |
264 |
|
Jul 2013 |
289.2 |
287.9 |
289.0 |
285.3 |
285.7 |
-3.5 |
1,411 |
|
Aug 2013 |
293.0 |
292.1 |
292.8 |
289.2 |
289.4 |
-3.6 |
2,335 |
|
Total |
|
4,074 |
|||||
MARKET NEWS
* The euro remained under pressure on Friday, a day after notching its biggest monthly fall against the dollar in nine months.
* Japan’s Nikkei share average dropped on Friday as the market took a breather after a sharp rise on the previous day on upbeat U.S. economic data.
* Brent crude fell to a six-week low near $111 a barrel on Thursday, capping a month-end sell-off that has seen prices fall by almost $8 in two weeks as concerns have resurfaced about the global economy and the strength of demand.
DATA EVENTS
* The following data is expected on Friday: (Time in GMT)
0100 China NBS manufacturing PMI
0145 China HSBC final manufacturing PMI
0500 India HSBC Markit Manufacturing PMI
0700 Germany Retail sales
0843 Italy Markit/ADACI Manufacturing PMI
0853 Germany Markit/BME Manufacturing PMI
0858 Euro zone Markit Manufacturing PMI
1000 Euro zone Inflation
1330 U.S. Personal income
1500 U.S. ISM Manufacturing PMI
1500 U.S. Construction spending
1930 U.S. CFTC commitment of traders data
(Reporting by Risa Maeda; Editing by Joseph Radford)
Source: Reuters
