Tokyo futures rise 0.5 pct on short covering (Aug 24)

TOKYO, Aug 24 (Reuters) – Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures closed up 0.5 percent on Friday as short covering later in the session helped reverse early losses, while Thailand’s intervention scheme and planned export curbs by top producers also supported prices.

The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) for January delivery rose 1 yen to settle at 221.3 yen ($2.82) per kg. For the week, the contract rose 0.1 percent, but is still down 16 percent so far this year.

“The market was pulled lower by oil in the morning, but Thailand’s intervention and the producers’ planned export curbs are helping stem the losses,” a Tokyo-based trade source said. “With the yen a tad weaker, participants who had held short positions bought back on short-covering.”

The Japanese yen has weakened slightly against the dollar recently with investors moving into riskier assets on hopes of further monetary stimulus measures from the United States and debt-laden Europe.

Top rubber producer Thailand plans to spend another 15 billion baht ($476 million) to buy the commodity from local farmers, but the latest attempt to push up domestic prices may not bear fruit because of slowing global demand.

The most-active rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for January delivery rose 40 yuan to finish at 21,770 yuan ($3,400) per tonne.

Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia last week have agreed to cut down rubber trees and trim exports by 300,000 tonnes, or about 3 percent of global production this year, in their latest attempt to shore up slumping global prices.

The front-month rubber contract on Singapore’s SICOM exchange for September delivery last traded at 253.50 U.S. cents per kg, down 1.2 cents. ($1 = 78.3800 Japanese yen) ($1 = 6.3535 Chinese yuan)

(Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori; Editing by Himani Sarkar)

Source: http://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/rubber-tokyo-futures-rise-0-082753258.html