Rubber pares weekly loss as yen drops amid stimulus speculation

ERJ staff report (TP)

Tokyo − Rubber advanced to a near one-week high as Japan’s currency slid to a four-month low against the dollar, boosting the appeal of yen-based futures, amid speculation the Bank of Japan may add stimulus, reported Aya Takada for Bloomberg.

The contract for delivery in April on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange gained 0.7 percent to settle at 260 yen a kg (€1.90), the highest level since 18 November. Futures pared losses to 0.8 percent this week.

The yen slid to 101.35 per dollar, the lowest level since 8 July, and was poised for its longest stretch of weekly declines since February. Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said today he does not think the yen is excessively weak, and the bank will do the utmost to restrict long-term yield gains.

“Speculation is growing that the BOJ may add stimulus to sustain growth and achieve its inflation goal, leading to sales of the yen and purchases of futures in Tokyo,” said Takaki Shigemoto, an analyst at research company JSC Corp.

Rubber for May delivery on the Shanghai Futures Exchange lost 0.5 percent to close at 19,095 yuan (€2,317) a tonne. Thai rubber free-on-board rose 0.3 percent to 78.85 baht (€1.83) a kg today (22 November), according to the Rubber Research Institute of Thailand.

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