BANGKOK (Mar 28): Tokyo rubber futures ended lower on Friday as a firm yen spurred selling, but steadier oil prices still lent support, dealers said.
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for September delivery fell 3.4 yen to settle at 233.5 yen ($2.29)per kg.
“The yen was quite firm today and that encouraged players to liquidate contracts ahead of the weekend to avoid risks,” said a Bangkok-based dealer.
The yen was relatively firm against the dollar at 102.15 yen . It hovered mostly below 102 yen, following Yellen’s comments.
However, dealers said TOCOM prices were still supported by firm oil prices.
Brent steadied at around $108 per barrel on Friday, holding most of its gains from the prior session and heading for the first weekly rise in five, on promising U.S. data and fears geopolitical tensions could dent supply from Russia.
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for September delivery rose 45 yuan to finish at 15,680 yuan ($2,500)per tonne.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore’s SICOM exchange for April delivery last traded at 187.0 U.S. cents per kg, down 0.2 cent.
($1 = 102.1350 Japanese Yen)
($1 = 6.2130 Chinese Yuan)
