Key Tokyo rubber futures inched lower on Wednesday despite a weaker yen and a rise in oil and other commodities, as investors grew cautious about the recent rapid pace of price increases and closed positions. The key Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for September delivery settled at 457.9 yen per kg, down 0.2 yen from Tuesday's settlement of 458.1 yen. It rose as high as 464.9 yen in early trade, just below Tuesday's high of 466.8 yen, its highest since March 7.
The Shanghai rubber market resumed trading after a two-day holiday earlier this week. The most active Shanghai rubber contract for September delivery rose 1,305 yuan to close at 35,940 yuan ($5,494) per tonne on Wednesday. Volume stood at 597,070 lots. Toyota Motor Corp will begin making two more car models on April 11, taking another small step towards normalising operations after a massive earthquake in Japan disrupted its supply chain and forced most of its factories to halt work.