SINGAPORE: Japanese rubber futures were mixed on Thursday, as traders weighed indicators of stock market strength with a stronger yen and expectations of further US interest rate hikes.
The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for August delivery was down 0.1 yen, or 0.04%, at 222.4 yen ($1.62) per kg, as of 0205 GMT. The rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange (SHFE) for May delivery was down 135 yuan, or 1.05%, at 12,245 yuan ($1,756.81) per tonne.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei average opened 0.72% higher. In the second day of his testimony to Congress on Wednesday, US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reaffirmed his hawkish message, though struck a cautious note that debate on the scale and path of future rate hikes was still underway and would be data-dependent.
Japan’s economy grew a tad slower than initially estimated in the fourth quarter, revised government data showed on Thursday, weighed down by weak consumption and underscoring the fragility of its recovery.
The Japanese yen strengthened 0.20% to 137.08 per dollar, as of 0207 GMT. A stronger yen makes yen-denominated assets less affordable when purchased in other currencies.
Asian shares were tense while the US dollar was perched near a three-month top on Thursday after a spate of economic data overnight appeared to support Powell’s hawkish guidance that rates would go higher and faster.
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