* Japanese rubber futures fell on Friday, as a firmer yen
made the
commodity less affordable for buyers holding other currencies
and falling oil prices disincentivised manufacturers from
switching to natural rubber.
* The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for August
delivery was down 1.2 yen, or 0.5%, at 229.8 yen
($1.68) per kg, as of 0209 GMT.
* For the week, the benchmark OSE contract has gained about
2.1%.
* The rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange
(SHFE) for
May delivery was up 5 yuan, or 0.04%, at 12,620 yuan
($1,829.38) per tonne.
* Japan's benchmark Nikkei share average opened up
0.78%.
* The Japanese yen rose 0.1% against the dollar to
136.59.
* Oil prices slipped in early trade but were on track to
post
gains of nearly 2% for the week as a rebound in China's factory
activity offset growing concerns about rising U.S. crude stocks
and potential rate hikes in Europe.
* The natural rubber market is hindered by weaker oil
prices,
leaving manufacturers with little incentive to shift away from
synthetic rubber derived from oil.
* Asian shares rose after Wall Street stocks reversed losses
to
end higher overnight, as investors weighed signals of a measured
interest rate approach from U.S. Federal Reserve officials and
prospects of an economic recovery in China.
* The front-month rubber contract on Singapore Exchange's
SICOM
platform for April delivery was steady, trading at
141.4 U.S. cents per kg.
* ($1 = 136.5900 yen)
* ($1 = 6.8985 yuan)
(Reporting by Carman Chew; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
SINGAPORE, March 3 (Reuters) -
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