* Japanese rubber futures inched lower on Wednesday,
tracking
lacklustre Shanghai futures and as a stronger yen against the
U.S. dollar prompted selling.
* The Osaka Exchange rubber contract for July delivery finished 0.4 yen, or 0.2%, lower at 226.1 yen per kg.
* "OSE market hovered in a tight trading range
without a
clear direction, same as Shanghai market," said Jiong Gu, an
analyst at Yutaka Trusty Securities Co Ltd.
* "There are bullish factors such as stronger oil prices and hopes for a recovery in Chinese economy, but investors look reluctant to increase long positions without clear signs that demand in China is picking up," he said.
* Oil rose for a third straight day on Wednesday as investor concern eased about U.S. interest rate hikes and an industry report pointed to a drop in U.S. crude inventories.
* The natural rubber market benefits from stronger oil
prices that
spur manufacturers to shift away from synthetic rubber, which is
derived from oil, thus driving up prices of natural rubber.
* The dollar fell to around 130.76 yen from around
132.26
yen on Tuesday afternoon in Asia, after Federal Reserve Chair
Jerome Powell failed to offer fresh signs of a hawkish pushback
against the resilient labour market, leading investors to bet
that interest rates may not rise much further.
* A stronger yen reduces the value of yen-based rubber in a
dollar
base and normally encourages investors to sell rubber futures at
OSE.
* The rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for
May
delivery fell 25 yuan to finish at 12,650 yuan ($1,865)
per tonne.
* The front-month rubber contract on Singapore Exchange's
SICOM
platform for March delivery last traded at 139.1 U.S.
cents per kg, down 0.4%.
($1 = 131.2900 yen)
($1 = 6.7783 Chinese yuan)
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and
Louise Heavens)
