TOCOM ends up 1.3pc; hits two-month high

TOKYO: Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures ended up 1.3 percent on Thursday after touching a two-month high on the back of a weaker yen after the Federal Reserve surprised markets with a more hawkish policy tone and signalled its confidence in the U.S. economic recovery.

The Fed on Wednesday ended its monthly bond purchase programme and dropped a characterisation of U.S. labour market slack as “significant” in a show of confidence in the economy’s prospects.

Against the yen, the greenback rose above 109 yen for the first time in 3-1/2 weeks.

The Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) rubber contract for April delivery finished 2.5 yen higher at 202.0 yen per kg, after touching an intraday high of 204.9 yen, the highest since Aug. 26.

“There was a lot of short-covering on the front-month contract, which pushed other contracts higher along with it,” said a Tokyo-based dealer who declined to be identified. “Thai producers and farmers would be very pleased with this.”

The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for January delivery fell 45 yuan to finish at 13,325 yuan per tonne.

The front-month rubber contract on Singapore’s SICOM exchange for November delivery last traded at 159.20 U.S. cents per kg, down 0.8 cent.