Rubber rebounded from the biggest drop in a month as Japan’s currency resumed a decline against the dollar, raising the appeal of yen-denominated futures.
The contract for delivery in October on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange gained as much as 1 percent to 277.7 yen a kilogram ($2,711 a metric ton) and was at 275.2 yen at 10:51 a.m., paring a second weekly loss to 4.4 percent. Futures fell 5.3 percent yesterday, the most since April 15.
The yen weakened to 102.59 per dollar after advancing to 100.83 yesterday, the highest level since May 10. The currency was bought as haven as Japanese shares fell the most since 2011 amid concerns about the global recovery.
“Futures were oversold yesterday,” Hideshi Matsunaga, an analyst at broker ACE Koeki Co., said by phone today. “The strength of Thai rubber prices, regardless of the sell-off in Tokyo, also spurred investors to buy back futures.”
Thai rubber free-on-board was unchanged at 91.15 baht ($3.04) a kilogram yesterday, according to the Rubber Research Institute of Thailand. It was the highest level since Feb. 22.
Indonesian rubber growers have asked the government to coordinate action with Thailand and Malaysia to keep prices at $3.50 a kilogram, Asril Sutan Amir, adviser to the Rubber Association of Indonesia, said yesterday. Thailand is the world’s largest producer followed by Indonesia and Malaysia.
Rubber for delivery in September on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 1.4 percent to 19,495yuan ($3,178) a ton.
Source: Bloomberg
