Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures ended up 3.1 percent on Friday, hitting a five-month high, after two days of declines, supported by firm Shanghai futures and gains in crude oil prices. Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, also got a boost from a weaker yen, which makes yen-denominated assets more affordable when purchased in other currencies.
The TOCOM rubber contract for March delivery ended 5.5 yen higher at 183.3 yen ($1.78) per kg, its highest since May 11. The benchmark contract posted a second straight week of gains, rising 5.5 percent this week. The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for January delivery rose 315 yuan to finish at 14,385 yuan ($2,157) per tonne.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore's SICOM exchange for November delivery last traded at 150.80 US cents per kg, up 2.8 cents. "Firm gains in oil and Shanghai futures helped push TOCOM this week," said a source with a Tokyo-based dealer. Rubber inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 0.2 percent from last release on September 30, the exchange said on Friday.
