Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures climbed on Friday, snapping a 4-day losing streak and recovering from a 1-1/2-month low as investors unwound short positions ahead of the weekend, but the contract marked its second weekly loss amid lacklustre trade.
The Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) new rubber contract for February delivery JRUc6, ended at 150.6 yen ($1.50) per kg, up 1.1 yen, or 0.7 percent, from its opening price of 149.5 yen.
For the week, the benchmark, which hit its lowest since July 11 of 148.6 yen on Thursday, posted a 4.1 percent decline.
The International Tripartite Rubber Council (ITRC), a grouping of Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, will trim exports by an additional 85,000 tonnes from September to December this year, an Indonesian rubber industry official said on Thursday.
"The market reacted poorly to the news due to lack of investors' interest in the TOCOM trade," a Tokyo-based dealer said.
"The TOCOM needs to attract more trading," he said, predicting the prices to remain in a narrow range next week.
The TOCOM futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, have been stuck within a tight trading range between 145 and 165 yen since late May amid lingering worries over oversupply.
On the downside, oil prices dipped in early trading on Friday after the Saudi energy minister tempered expectations of strong market intervention by producers during talks next month.
The dollar inched down 0.1 percent to 100.44 yen on Friday, with investors focused on a speech later in the day by the chair of the Federal Reserve that may provide clarity on whether U.S. interest rates will rise this year.
The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for January delivery fell 90 yuan to finish at 12,300 yuan ($1,844.49) per tonne.
The front-month rubber contract on Singapore's SICOM exchange for September delivery last traded at 126.1 U.S. cents per kg, down 0.1 cent.
