Tokyo futures hit 2-wk low on Fed’s mixed signals

BANGKOK, July 18 (Reuters) – Tokyo rubber futures fell 3.6 percent to a two-week low on Wednesday on renewed demand worries after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke offered little guidance as to whether the central bank was moving closer to new stimulus.

The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange for December delivery dropped 6.9 yen to settle at 243.5 yen ($3.08) per kg.

It earlier fell 9.1 yen, or 3.6 percent, to an intra-day low of 241.3 yen per kg, the lowest since July 2.

The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for September delivery declined 445 yuan to finish at 23,825 yuan ($3,700) per tonne.

The front-month August rubber contract on Singapore’s SICOM exchange was last traded at 231.0 U.S. cents per kg, down 3.3 cents.

“Rubber fell in line with oil prices as players were concerned that demand for commodities could fall as there was no stimulus package from the Fed,” one dealer said.

Bernanke on Tuesday offered a gloomy view of the economy’s prospects, but provided few concrete clues on whether the U.S. central bank was moving closer to a fresh round of monetary stimulus.

Brent crude slipped below $104 a barrel on Wednesday, snapping five days of gains.

Dealers said TOCOM prices may rebound on Thursday after prices finished above a major support level at 240 yen per kg.

However, weak demand outlook could still weigh on prices, preventing them from rising significantly, they said.

($1 = 78.9950 Japanese yen)

($1 = 6.3729 Chinese yuan)

Source: http://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/rubber-tokyo-futures-hit-2-081131489.html