TOKYO, Oct 15 (Reuters) – Tokyo rubber futures eased as investors took profits on Thursday when they neared a major resistance level at 220 yen, but sentiment remained bullish due to strong oil prices.
* The key Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for March delivery <0#JRU:> fell 3.5 yen or around 2 percent to 214.4 yen per kg, after earlier rising to 219.1 yen.
* The benchmark contract retreated on profit taking from a one-year high of 219.6 yen on Wednesday, proving that 220 yen remained the key technical resistance level. The last time a benchmark rose above 220 yen was in October last year.
* Rubber futures were supported, however, by the general inflow of speculative money into commodities and commodity-linked currencies as investor risk appetite was slowly recovering.
* “Rubber, along with other commodities and commodity-linked currencies such as the Australian dollar, is rising as it is becoming clear that risk-taking is resuming and speculative money is flowing into the markets across the board,” said Masato Miyanaga, senior adviser at H.S. Futures in Tokyo.
* “While players may face near-term resistance at 220 yen, the market is looking upwards technically after breaking above a 191-210 yen range that had been in place since August,” he said.
* A new range was forming at 210-230 yen, he said.
* Traders said firmness in the physical market due to tightness in supply and strong oil prices also helped support sentiment for futures.
* U.S. crude oil rose towards $76 per barrel on Thursday, extending the previous day’s gains when it settled at a record high for the year on renewed optimism about the outlook for the economy. [O/R]
* The dollar was around 89.65 yen on Thursday compared with late U.S. trading levels of 89.36/40. [USD/]

Source: Reuters

[Dow Jones] Thai physical rubber prices higher, with RSS3 offered at 238-240 U.S. cents/kg vs 235 cents/kg yesterday, FOB basis, with market paying little attention to reports of strike by some workers at Thai unit of Cheng Shin Rubber Industry Co., traders say. Management of Cheng Shin”s wholly owned unit, Maxxis International (Thailand) Co., negotiating with workers to resolve issue, Taiwan”s largest tire maker by revenue says earlier in statement. Traders say Thai physical rubber prices up on tight supply, firm crude, while recent active buying by major international tire makers also supportive factor, with reports of strike unlikely to impact on market unless it becomes protracted. (ANJ)

Source: Dow Jones

TOKYO, Oct 14 (Reuters) – Key Tokyo rubber futures rose to a one-year high near 220 yen per kg on Wednesday before succumbing to profit-taking.
* Gains in oil and other commodity prices prompted speculative buying, and firmness in the physical rubber market, partly reflecting consistent buying interest by Chinese users, was also supportive.
* But the Tokyo market’s failure to clear the key 220 yen resistance level, coupled with a firming yen, prompted quick profit-taking.
* The key Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for March delivery <0#JRU:> rose as high as 219.6 yen, up 1 percent from the previous settlement of 217.4 yen. This marked the highest point for any benchmark since October 2008.
* But the contract reversed gains to fall 0.3 yen or 0.1 percent to 217.1 yen by 0545 GMT.
* “Breaking through the 220 yen level would change the market’s outlook to being completely bullish. That’s the key technical turning point,” said a manager at a trading firm in Japan, adding that if this happened, the upside potential would be a widening to 240 yen.
* But a rise in the yen versus the dollar has undermined investor sentiment for now, traders said. A higher yen deflates yen-denominated commodities futures prices.
* A complete halt at around 220 yen would form a double-top on the charts, which typically suggests a bearish technical outlook, the manager said.
* The dollar slid to its weakest level in 14 months against a basket of currencies on Wednesday, under pressure from expectations of continued low U.S. interest rates and as investors bet on commodity currencies. [USD/]
* The dollar fell 0.8 percent on the day to 88.95 yen, heading back towards last week’s eight-month low of 88.01 yen.
* Thailand, the world’s biggest rubber exporter, wants other top producers to help push up prices even as the country plans a big expansion in cultivation. Thailand also on Tuesday unveiled a plan to cultivate a further 160,000 hectares of rubber plantation by early next year. [ID:nBKK235114]
* Passenger car sales in China rose 83.6 percent in September from a year earlier. But government incentives which have boosted sales in recent months could easily be turned off in 2010 if Beijing frets about an overheating economy. [ID:nSHA305740]
* Oil hit a new 2009 high above $75 a barrel on Wednesday, boosted by the weak dollar and surprisingly strong China trade data that underscored a recovery in the world’s second-largest oil user. [O/R]
* Earnings from key U.S. companies are being carefully awaited to gauge the state of the world’s biggest oil consumer.
* U.S. stocks weakened on Tuesday as disappointing sales from Johnson & Johnson stirred jitters about the strength of earnings, snapping the S&P 500′s six-day winning streak.

Source: Reuters

[Dow Jones] Asian cash rubber prices mostly higher, in line with futures gains, while recent strong buying by majors – notably Goodyear, Bridgestone – also lends support, traders say. Supply from Thailand relatively tight as farmers hold back raw materials on talk that Thai government may work with other producing countries in effort to maintain prices above THB80/kg, says trader in Singapore. For a daily breakdown of cash prices for all rubber grades, keyword search ASIAN PHYSICAL RUBBER PRICES to see the item. (ANJ)

Source: Dow Jones

BANGKOK, Oct 13 (Reuters) – The Thai government said on Tuesday it would seek cooperation with other key rubber producing nations to push prices above 80 baht ($2.40) per kg.
“I will visit Indonesia and Malaysia very soon to seek their cooperation to lift prices of rubber to an appropriate level. Rubber prices should stay above 80 baht per kg by February 2010,” Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban told reporters.
“Maybe we can do something with our stocks to support prices,” he added.
Thai unsmoked sheet (USS3), a raw material for export-grade rubber sheet, was quoted at around 72 baht per kg on Tuesday, traders said. ($1=33.30 Baht)

Source: Reuters