Rubber rose for a second day, heading for the longest weekly winning streak since November 2007, as the yen weakened against the dollar and oil gained, boosting the appeal for the commodity used in tires.
Rubber for delivery in June advanced as much as 3.1 percent to 315 yen a kilogram ($3,503 a metric ton) on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange and traded at 313.6 yen by 9:53 a.m. local time. The price has climbed 0.4 percent this week, heading for a seventh straight weekly gain.
Crude for February delivery rose 1.3 percent yesterday to $95.49 yesterday to the highest close since Sept. 17. The yen touched 90.13 per dollar yesterday, the weakest level since June 2010. Oil is used to make synthetic rubber, while a weaker Japanese currency boosts the appeal of yen-based contracts.
“Tokyo rubber futures got boosts from the weaker yen and higher oil prices,” said Kazuhiko Saito, an analyst at broker Fujitomi Co. in Tokyo. Investors are waiting for China’s economic data today to see the direction for next week, he said.
The economy in China, the world’s top consumer, probably expanded 7.8 percent in the fourth quarter from a year ago, up from 7.4 percent in the three months through September, according to a Bloomberg survey before data from the National Bureau of Statistics. The bureau may also say factory output and retail sales accelerated in December.
Rubber for delivery in May rose 1.1 percent to 25,870 yuan ($4,160) a ton on the Shanghai Futures Exchange. Thai rubber free-on-board dropped for a fourth day, falling 1.5 percent to 97.70 baht ($3.27) a kilogram yesterday, according to the Rubber Research Institute ofThailand.
Source: Bloomberg
