SINGAPORE, Oct 11 (Reuters) –
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Japanese rubber futures weakened on Friday and were headed for their first weekly loss in four weeks, as a lack of further fiscal stimulus from top consumer China weighed on market sentiment, although a softer yen and stronger oil prices limited the decline.
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The March Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract JRUc6, 0#2JRU: was down 8.5 yen, or 2.14%, at 389.0 yen ($2.62) per kg by 0205 GMT.
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The contract has lost 2.4% so far this week, remaining on track for its first weekly fall since Sept. 13.
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The January rubber contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) SNRv1 slid 690 yuan, or 3.71%, to 17,925 yuan ($2,533.86) per metric ton.
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China’s finance ministry is scheduled to hold a news conference on fiscal policy on Saturday, the government said on Wednesday.
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On Tuesday, Beijing had said it was “fully confident” of achieving its full-year growth target but refrained from introducing stronger fiscal steps, disappointing investors who had banked on more policy support to get the economy back on track.
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The country’s exports are likely to have risen at the slowest pace in five months in September, suggesting manufacturers are no longer rushing out orders ahead of tariffs and global demand for Chinese goods is softening.
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The dollar added 0.06% to 148.68 yen JPY=EBS, inching back towards Thursday’s two-month highs. USD/
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A weaker currency makes yen-denominated assets more affordable to overseas buyers. FRX/
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Oil prices jumped about 4%, as U.S. fuel use spiked amid global supply pressures and signs that energy demand could grow in the U.S. and China. O/R
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Natural rubber often takes direction from oil prices as it competes for market share with synthetic rubber, which is made from crude oil.
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The front-month November rubber contract on Singapore Exchange’s SICOM platform STFc1 last traded at 194.7 U.S. cents per kg, up 0.5%.
($1 = 148.7400 yen)
($1 = 7.0742 yuan)
Reporting by Gabrielle Ng; Editing by Eileen Soreng
