Rubber climbed from the lowest level in two weeks after oil in New York surged to a 15-month high, boosting the appeal of the commodity as an alternative to synthetic products used in tires.
Rubber for delivery in December on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange advanced as much as 2.1 percent to 239.5 yen a kilogram ($2,408 a metric ton) and traded at 239.2 yen at 10:23 a.m. Futures reached the lowest settlement since June 27 yesterday.
West Texas Intermediate oil has rallied 11 percent in the last three weeks and is supported by U.S. crude stockpiles that tumbled for a second week. Stocks and commodities advanced after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the world’s biggest economy will continue to need stimulus for the foreseeable future.
“Rubber chased gains in oil amid speculation that the U.S. will maintain monetary stimulus to support growth,” Kazuhiko Saito, an analyst at broker Fujitomi Co. in Tokyo, said by phone today.
Natural rubber imports by China, the world’s largest consumer, were 130,000 tons in June, the customs agency said yesterday. That compares with 177,400 tons in May and 163,317 tons a year ago, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Rubber for January delivery on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 1.8 percent to 17,590 yuan($2,867) a ton yesterday. Thai rubber free-on-board fell 1.2 percent to 80.70 baht ($2.58) a kilogram yesterday, according to the Rubber Research Institute of Thailand.
Source: Bloomberg
