The most active contract on Tokyo rubber futures rose to its highest in almost five months on Tuesday as early gains in Japanese shares spurred fund buying. The benchmark rubber contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange, currently February 2011, settled up 8.9 yen per kg at 305.4 yen after rising as high as 305.9 yen, its strongest level since late April.
Gains on Tokyo futures lifted the physical prices in Southeast Asia, with benchmark Thai RSS3 hovering near a record see in April. The TOCOM futures market was closed on Monday for a national holiday and will be closed again on Thursday. China, the world's biggest rubber consumer, will also be on holiday from Wednesday until Friday.