SINGAPORE: Japanese rubber futures edged lower on Tuesday, weighed down by a stronger yen and marginal losses in the Shanghai market, although the losses were capped by stronger domestic equities.
The Osaka Exchange’s (OSE) rubber contract for June delivery was down 1.2 yen, or 0.5%, at 219.6 yen ($1.67) per kg as of 0200 GMT.
The OSE was closed on Monday for a public holiday in Japan.
The rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for May delivery was down 20 yuan, or 0.2%, at 12,855 yuan ($1,903) per tonne. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei share average opened up 0.78%. The Japanese yen rose roughly 0.2% to 131.57 per dollar.
A stronger Japanese currency makes yen-denominated assets less affordable when purchased in other units.
Rubber demand sentiment has been mixed over the past month after China relaxed its strict Covid-19 curbs.
People joined long queues outside immigration offices in Beijing on Monday, eager to renew their passports after China dropped COVID border controls that had largely prevented its 1.4 billion residents from travelling for three years.
Core consumer prices in Japan’s capital, a leading indicator of nationwide trends, rose a faster-than-expected 4.0% in December from a year earlier, in a sign of broadening inflationary pressure.
World stocks rallied on Monday to their highest levels since mid-December after China reopened its borders while benchmark Treasury yields drifted lower as investors scaled back expectations for further rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore Exchange’s SICOM platform for February delivery last traded at 134.0 US cents per kg, down 0.1%.
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