Tokyo futures rise but stronger yen limits gains (July 25)

Tokyo futures rise but stronger yen limits gains (July 25)
July 25, 2011





TOKYO, July 25 (Reuters) – Key Tokyo rubber futures rose on Monday, after the market ended above a key technical level last week and oil prices rose, but sentiment was weighed down by a stronger yen.

FUNDAMENTALS

* The key Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for December delivery <0#2JRU:> rose 2.9 yen or 0.8 percent to 384.0 yen per kg as of 0022 GMT.

* The front-month July contract will expire later in the session. The contract for January 2012 delivery will become the new benchmark from Tuesday.

* The most active Shanghai rubber contract for January delivery closed on Friday at 36,110 yuan ($5,597.061) per tonne, up from the previous day’s close of 35,965 yuan per tonne. Volume slipped to 708,164 lots from Thursday’s 736,124 lots.

* U.S. crude futures fell on Monday after settling at a six-week high on Friday, taking their cue from a decline in U.S. stock futures amid uncertainty over talks to avert an unprecedented U.S. default.

* The dollar slipped in early Asia-Pacific trade on Monday as investors looked for signs of progress to break the deadlock that will avert a U.S. debt default. The dollar fell to a four-month low of 78.10 yen in early trade. A stronger yen deflates yen-priced TOCOM futures prices and weighs on sentiment.

* For top stories on the rubber market and other news click , or

MARKET NEWS

* President Barack Obama and congressional leaders struggled on Sunday to break a partisan deadlock on a budget deal to avoid a U.S. debt default and reassure global markets, with no sign of a deal emerging.

* Suzuki Motor Corp could deepen its cooperation with Fiat amid a rift with German partner Volkswagen , a German magazine reported on Saturday.

* The Nikkei average snapped a three-day run of gains on Monday as a stronger yen dragged down exporters, while investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of a slew of earnings reports due later this week.

* U.S. stock index futures fell sharply on Sunday as failure so far by the government to strike a deal on the debt ceiling made the prospect of default, once considered an impossible outcome, more likely.






Malaysia: Rubber expected to trade lower this week
July 25, 2011





KUALA LUMPUR: MALAYSIAN rubber is expected to trade lower this week as the stronger ringgit weighs on prices.

“Overseas demand is expected to slow down due to the strengthening ringgit but tighter supply due to heavy rain in Thailand, a major producing country, may cushion the effect,” a dealer said.

The local market was also likely to be influenced by the commodity’s performance on regional markets as well as industrial data from major rubber consumer countries such as China, he added.

On a week-to-week basis, the Malaysian Rubber Board’s official physical noon price for tyre-grade SMR 20 declined 18.5 sen to 1,372.5 sen per kg from 1,354.0 sen, while latex-in-bulk rose 14.0 sen to 896.5 sen per kg from 882.5 sen. The unofficial closing price for tyre-grade SMR 20 gained 8.5 sen to 1,368.5 sen per kg from 1,360.0 sen, while latex-in-bulk added 5.0 sen to 892.5 sen per kg from 887.5 sen.