BEIJING (March 26): Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures bounced back from a 17-month low hit in early trading on Monday to close up a little more than 1%, but were still pressured by a stronger yen and weaker Shanghai futures.
Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for rubber prices in Southeast Asia, have also been dragged down by rising rubber stockpiles in Japan and China, as well as worries over slack demand amid rising trade tensions between the world’s top two economies.
“The trade spat between China and the United States increased worries on tyre exports, denting demand, while supplies keep rising,” said an industry insider.
TOCOM and Shanghai markets tumbled on Friday as rising US-China trade tensions unnerved China’s equity, bond and commodity markets.
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for August delivery, climbed 1.15% to 176.5 yen per kg after touching its lowest since October 2016 earlier in the day.
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for May delivery fell 5.61% to finish at 11,020 yuan per tonne.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore’s SICOM exchange for April delivery last traded at 132.1 US cents per kg, down 1.5%.
The yen edged up 0.4% on Monday after hitting a 16-month high against the dollar on Friday as concerns over rising global trade tensions triggered a bout of investor risk aversion.
