Tokyo rubber futures fall

Key Tokyo rubber futures retreated from their early highs and ended lower on Monday as oil prices lost steam after rising on concerns that tensions in Egypt might spread across the Middle East, while a stronger yen also capped the market's gains. The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange for July delivery rose as much as 6.6 yen or 1.4 percent in early trade to 475.7 yen per kg, but settled at 466 yen, down 3.1 yen or 0.7 percent.
The benchmark contract posted a monthly gain of 12 percent, down slightly from a 15 percent rise in December. The contract hit a record high of 484.9 yen last week. On the Shanghai futures exchange, the most active rubber contract for May delivery hit a record high of 41,850 yuan ($6,359) per tonne on Moday, surpassing the previous record high of 41,200 yuan hit last week.