Tokyo rubber futures retreated from a one-month high on Friday as operators took profits before the weekend, although sentiment remained firm on the back of the yen's weakness and expectations for Chinese buying, brokers said.
The benchmark September 2004 rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange settled down 3.1 yen per kg at the day's low of 160.9 yen, slipping from the high of 162.3.
Other months fell by 1.0 to 2.9 yen.
September rubber reached a life high of 164.9 yen per kg on Thursday, the highest for TOCOM benchmark rubber on a continuation basis since March 16.
"After the market rallied rapidly this week, operators were cautious about testing the upside before the weekend," one broker said.