Tokyo futures up on Chinese data, weaker oil still weighs

Tokyo rubber futures ended higher on Friday on the back of rising Chinese new loans, but persistent fears of weak demand and easing oil prices capped the gains, dealers said.

The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for February delivery rose 2.3 yen to settle at 190.2 yen per kg.

"TOCOM got support from rising loans in China, but concerns about weak demand also lingered and weak oil prices were an additional negative factor," said a Bangkok-based dealer.

Chinese banks made 702.5 billion yuan ($114.6 billion) of new loans in August, data showed on Friday, picking up from an abrupt drop the previous month as the government keeps up modest policy support for the economy.

Brent crude dropped below $98 a barrel on Friday, heading for its worst week in six as concerns over weak demand outweighed geopolitical worries in the Middle East and Ukraine.

The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for January delivery rose 115 yuan to finish at 13,520 yuan per tonne.

The front-month rubber contract on Singapore's SICOM exchange for October delivery was last traded at 152.5 U.S. cents per kg, up 0.3 cent.