Japanese rubber futures hit over one-month high
SINGAPORE: Japanese rubber futures rose to their highest in more than a month on Tuesday after a temporary truce in the US-China trade war sparked optimism about a possible de-escalation in trade tensions. The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for October delivery closed up 1.81% to 315.1 yen ($2.13) per kg. Earlier in the session, the contract touched 316.1 yen, its highest since April 7. The rubber contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) for September delivery rose 1.66% to 14,995 yuan ($2,084.81) per metric ton. The most active June butadiene rubber contract on the SHFE surged 5.85% to 12,205 yuan ($1,696.91) per ton. Global rubber futures ended the week slightly firmer on fresh speculative buying, driven by optimism over renewed US-China tariff talks, Japan Exchange Group said on Monday.
On Monday, China and the United States announced a truce in their trade war that will see the rolling back of the bulk of tariffs and other countermeasures by Wednesday.
The US will cut extra tariffs imposed on Chinese imports last month to 30% from 145% for the next three months, the two sides said, while China will trim duties on US imports to 10% from 125%. Japan’s Nikkei share average jumped to the highest in almost three months on Tuesday on the Sino-US tariff truce, surging as much as 2.3% shortly after the open.
Meanwhile, the yen was up 0.48% at 147.76 per dollar, having tumbled more than 2% on Monday. A weaker currency makes yen-denominated assets more affordable to overseas buyers.
The front-month rubber contract on the Singapore Exchange’s SICOM platform for June delivery last traded at 175.9 US cents per kg, up 2.7%.
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