TOCOM rises to near 5-week high on oil, weak yen

TOKYO: Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures ended up 2.5 percent on Monday after earlier hitting their highest in almost five weeks as a weaker yen and strong gains in oil prices overshadowed soft Chinese import data.

Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, stood near a six-month high hit in early January when worries over lower production in flood-hit Malaysia and Thailand flared, buoyed by oil prices.

Oil prices steadied on Monday as falling U.S. oil rig counts and signs of strong U.S. economic growth were balanced by a slump in Chinese imports, pointing to lower fuel demand in the world biggest energy consumer.

The Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for July delivery ended up 5.3 yen at 214.5 yen per kg. The benchmark contract earlier hit 214.8 yen, the highest since Jan. 6.

"The link with crude prices has strengthened and overall TOCOM markets were on a "rising mode"," said a Tokyo-based broker, who added that the benchmark contract is likely to rise above the January high in coming days depending on oil prices.

China imported 350,000 tonnes of natural and synthetic rubber in January, down 14.6 percent from the previous month and down 27.1 percent from a year earlier, its preliminary trade data showed on Sunday.

India's natural rubber imports in January jumped 47 percent from a year earlier to 30,441 tonnes as lower prices in world markets prompted tyremakers to increase overseas purchases, an official with the state-run Rubber Board said on Friday.

Rubber inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 0.1 percent from the previous week, the exchange said on Friday.

The U.S. dollar was quoted around 118.77 yen, up from around 117.25 yen on Friday afternoon.

The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for May delivery rose 85 yuan to finish at 13,680 yuan per tonne.

The front-month rubber contract on Singapore's SICOM exchange for March delivery last traded at 141 U.S. cents per kg, down 0.2 cent.