TOKYO: Japanese rubber futures climbed to a two-week high on Monday as a rally in Tokyo equities boosted investor risk appetite.
The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for January delivery finished 2.3 yen, or 0.5percent, higher at 423.0 yen (USD2.7) per kg. It earlier rose to 424.5 yen, its highest since July 24. The contract rose 0.3percent last week, its second consecutive weekly gain. The rubber contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) for September delivery rose 10 yuan, or 0.06percent, to settle at 16,905 yuan (USD2,506) per metric ton.
Rubber inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 0.7percent from last Friday, the exchange said on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei share average rose 2percent on Monday to its highest close in nearly four weeks, led by AI and chip-linked stocks after Wall Street’s rally on Friday. Oil prices were little changed on Monday as optimism over talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was tempered by Iran’s insistence that the United States must satisfy several demands before the waterway could reopen.
The yen traded at 158.55 against the US dollar, compared with 158.31 in Friday afternoon in Asia. The Singapore Exchange was closed for a holiday. Trading will resume on Tuesday, August 11.
Indonesia, the world’s second-largest rubber supplier accounting for 14percent of global output, is seeing a wave of farmers abandon rubber for palm oil in a shift that could tighten global supply.
Thailand plans to cut excise tax rates for automakers that establish production facilities in the country to encourage greater use of locally sourced parts and raw materials, the finance minister said on Friday.