TOKYO: Japanese rubber futures climbed for the fourth consecutive day on Friday, tracking a gain in the Shanghai market, while a firmer Tokyo stock market also helped boost investors’ risk appetite, leading to a small increase for the week.
The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for September delivery finished 2.4 yen, or 0.7%, higher at 328.6 yen ($2.2) per kg. It rose 0.2% for the week, reversing last week’s 6.9% drop.
The rubber contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) for September delivery rose 175 yuan to finish at 14,665 yuan ($2,031) per metric ton.
Japan’s Nikkei share average ended higher on Friday, driven by chip-related heavyweights and posted a record fiscal-year gain in terms of points amid heavy foreign buying.
Core inflation in Japan’s capital slowed in March and factory output unexpectedly slid in the previous month, heightening uncertainty on how soon the Bank of Japan can raise interest rates again after exiting its radical monetary stimulus earlier this month.
Toyota Motor’s global sales dropped 7% in February from a year earlier, hurt by a heavy decline in China due to the Lunar Year holidays and a slump in Japan after a safety test scandal at its small car unit.
Rubber inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 0.1 % from last Friday, the exchange said on Friday. The Japanese yen traded at 151.31 against the dollar, in line with the levels in late Thursday trade in Asia.
The yen fell to a 34-year low against the dollar on Wednesday, prompting Japan’s three main monetary authorities to hold an emergency meeting to discuss the weak yen.
Singapore’s financial markets were closed on Friday for a public holiday. Trading will resume on Monday, April 1.
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