Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures ended higher on Friday after hitting a seven-year low as Chinese shares recovered, but closed the week sharply lower, dragged down by worries over China's slowing economy.
Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, reacted little after the Thai government threatened to cut rubber export quotas if traders did not play their part in stemming a price slide that has dragged the value of the raw material to recent lows.
"It is hard to curb exports for a long period of time because production management is difficult," said a source with a Tokyo-based broker.
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for June delivery <0#2JRU:> finished 0.7 yen higher at 149.5 yen per kg after dropping as low as 146 yen, the lowest since March 2009.
For the week, the contract fell 6%, its biggest percentage fall in four months, also weighed by a slew of data pointing to rising inventories.
Crude rubber inventories at Japanese ports had risen to a one-month high as of Dec 20, industry data showed.
Rubber inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 2.8% from the previous week, the exchange said on Friday.
China's major stock indexes regained some ground on Friday after Beijing ditched a circuit breaker mechanism, leading to gains in oil prices.
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for May delivery rose 25 yuan to finish at 10,090 yuan per tonne.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore's SICOM exchange for February delivery last traded at 106.7 US cents per kg, down 0.3 US cent.
