Tokyo rubber futures retreated from a one-month high on Friday, dragged down by firmness in the yen, but limited supply still provided support, allowing the benchmark contract to finish above the psychological level of 385 yen. The November contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange fell 4.4 yen to settle at 387.0 yen ($4.758) per kg.
However, the most active Shanghai rubber contract for September delivery rose 60 yuan to finish at 32,750 yuan ($5,045.793) per tonne. "Actually, rubber sentiment is still good, but today it was weighed down by the rising yen. However, it was still supported as oil prices remain firm and supply is still limited," one dealer said. The dollar tumbled broadly on Friday after weak US economic data triggered stop-loss selling. The yen was at 80.90 yen per dollar by 0856 GMT. A stronger yen makes the dollar-based rubber commodity cheaper and usually encourages players to sell rubber futures to stop losses. Brent crude rose on Friday, hovering above $115 a barrel.