Benchmark Tokyo rubber futures climbed on Friday, eking out a small weekly gain and marking a third week of rises, helped by Thailand's plan to start a second round of buying. The Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) rubber contract for July delivery finished 1.5 percent, or 3.3 yen, higher at 222.2 yen ($2) per kg.
TOCOM futures, which set the tone for tyre rubber prices in Southeast Asia, managed to gain 0.8 percent for the week. Thailand's government will commence a second round of buying rubber from the market through a 6 billion baht ($184 million) buffer fund amid excess supply and weak demand, the farm minister said on Wednesday. But some investors are sceptical about how long and how much the efforts will support the market. "Thailand has been trying to shore up prices by similar interventions since last year, but it has only boosted the market for a short while," said a Tokyo-based dealer.
Still, market participants are closely watching the outcome of a planned meeting by producers, including Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia next week to discuss measures to support prices, he added. "With a bullish sign in the chart, some Japanese speculators have apparently attempted to push up prices, but they were hit by a counterattack of sell orders from foreign funds. The market is expected to stay lacklustre early next week," the dealer said. Both China and Singapore markets were closed for the Lunar New Year holiday. Chinese markets will reopen on February 25, while Singapore's SICOM exchange will resume trading on Monday.
Comments
Comments are closed.