SINGAPORE: Japanese rubber futures rose on Friday, logging gains for the fifth consecutive week, as firmer oil prices and Chinese export data fuelled investor appetite. The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for June delivery closed up 5.4 yen, or 2.12%, at 260.6 yen ($1.80) per kg.
The benchmark contract was up 1.44% for the week. * The rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange (SHFE) for May delivery closed up 155 yuan, or 1.14%, at 13,770 yuan ($1,922.03) per metric ton.
Oil prices rose more than 2% on Friday as the United States and Britain launched strikes against Yemen-based Houthi, in retaliation to the Iran-backed group’s attacks on ships in the Red Sea.
“Speculation on the Red Sea developments is likely to induce volatility in both rubber futures and physical spot,” said Farah Miller, CEO of Helixtap Technologies, an independent rubber-focused data company.
Natural rubber often takes direction from oil prices as it competes for market share with synthetic rubber, which is made from crude oil. China’s exports exceeded expectations to improve 2.3% year-on-year in December 2023, compared with a 0.5% increase in November, Chinese customs data showed on Friday.
A customs survey of more than three-quarters of major Chinese exporters expects exports to remain the same or rise in 2024. China imported 723,000 million tonnes of rubber in December, up 5.55% month-on-month, and imported 7,952,000 million tonnes of rubber in 2023, up 8% from 2022. China’s consumer price index rose 0.2% last year, the slowest pace since 2009, and the full-year producer price index fell 3.0%, marking the steepest downturn since 2015. * Japan’s benchmark Nikkei average closed up 1.50%, ending at its best week since March 2022.
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